Crystal Cave CLOSED. Crystal Cave and the road to it had to close early this season due to a lightning fire in the area. Firefighters have been working to suppress the Hidden Fire since it started on September 10. Although the cave will stay closed, the road may reopen, depending on safety issues.

Be prepared for smoky conditions. Although the fire is contained, it will continue to smolder for several weeks. On some days, significant smoke has been present in areas of the park. Be prepared for haze and the odor of smoke during your visit.

Fire Restrictions
As of July 11, 2008, the parks entered a Stage 1 Fire Restriction. This means that no wood or barbecue fires are permitted below 6,000 feet, except in designated campgrounds. This includes Ash Mountain Picnic Area, Hospital Rock Picnic Area and backcountry travel below 6,000 feet. Gas or propane stoves may be used at all elevations. It also means that no smoking below 6,000 feet is permitted, except within a developed area, a campground, an enclosed vehicle, or a building which allows smoking. Increased fire danger may lead to further restrictions. Check bulletin boards and visitor centers in the parks before starting any fire. More >>>

• Tire chains may be required at any time when there is snow. Usually the foothills are snow-free, but often there is snow where the sequoia trees grow. 
• Use lower gears when coming downhill to keep from overheating and losing your brakes.
• No gas stations lie within park boundaries; be sure to fill up on the way in. Once up in the parks, the closest gas available year-round is at Hume Lake (15 miles north Grant Grove in the national forest). From late spring into fall gas is available at Stony Creek (between Lodgepole and Grant Grove), and at Kings Canyon Lodge (on private land between Grant Grove and Cedar Grove).
• Up-to-date park road information: Please use our automated phone system at (559) 565-3341, extension 941, available 24-hours a day.
• Road conditions outside the parks: Contact CalTrans (California State Dept. of Transportation) 1-800-427-7623.

• Cell phones: Cell phones generally don't work in the parks because of the rugged terrain. Don't count on them! Note location of pay phones or ask a ranger.

GENERALS HIGHWAY RECONSTRUCTION

Over a number of years, the Federal Highways Administration is overseeing reconstruction of this historic road. One stretch between Hospital Rock Picnic Area and the Giant Forest Museum was completed in November, 2007. Work on the next section won't begin until 2009. Until then, only occasional work will be needed, and no delays are anticipated.

Road History: In 1926, the first 16 miles of the Generals Highway opened, linking a foothills wagon road to the Giant Forest. It saw its first pavement in 1929. The 30 miles to Grant Grove opened in 1935, while the Civilian Conservation Corps of the Great Depression days were building the rock guardwalls, drains, and watering stations that add so much history and character to the earlier stretch.

What should be done when a historic road like this, a road at home within a landscape, wears out? When the numbers and sizes of modern vehicles, undreamed of by its builders, can no longer safely travel it? Engineers from the Federal Highway Administration, experts in road building, worked out a plan with the National Park Service, experts in conservation.

The basic objectives of the project are straightforward: The road will be resurfaced, with the old paving recycled into the new road base. The road will be made a more consistent width, rather than varying as it does from 18' to 24'. Archeological features will be preserved; historic structures will be preserved or rebuilt. Stone walls, not metal, will line the road cuts. Power and telephone poles will be removed and the lines placed underground.

The changes will make the road safer, but the character of the road will be maintained. Alignment and grade will stay essentially the same. The curves and scenery will remain.