Hi Janice,

I love Sequoia and try to get back a couple times a year. Lodgepole is a great campground right next to a creek with a natural rock water pool to keep cool. However, the sites are super close together without privacy since you're in a National Park. But Lodgepole offers a lot of amenities like a camp store, showers, laundry, ice cream and premade sandwiches, souveniers, etc. When we do camp there, we try to stay in campsites 96 - 105 area as it's right along the creek and has a bit more privacy than others.

The other great campground is Stony Creek and it's in Sequoia National Forest, so you end up with a lot more campsite for your money. They have showers available about a mile away and a small camp store and laundry at the same location Stony Creek Market, oh, and they offer gas for your car. The campsite are right along Stony Creek, which is small, but it's nice to hear the water and keep your feet cool.

These are the first two I would recommend. Dorst is great too, but again, you are close to other campers since you're in the National Park. Dorst is the campground we were in when a bear walked right behind our chairs and sniffed our bear box... then he wandered over to the next campsite. We heard and saw bears in this campground more than in any others. So if an encounter with wildlife is what you're looking for, camp here :).

For an evening view of bears, take a slow drive to Crescent Meadow and take a walk around Meadow Loop. You're sure to see bears along this drive or in the meadow. We have seen them every time we go. We ususally head out after 5:00 or ideally 6:30ish.

Sequoia park is one of my favorite places. It's not nearly as crowded as Yosemite and when hiking, sometimes you feel like you're out there all alone. I hope to retire here one day.

See you around the campfire!
Karen