Early settlers in the Sierra

This is the summer home of Hale Tharp, one of the first white settlers in what is now Sequoia NP. Tharp lived here each summer from 1861 until 1890, herding sheep in the adjacent meadow. (John Muir wasn't a fan of sheep in the Sierra; he called them "hoofed locusts"). Tharp vacated this spot when Sequoia became a national park in 1890...at the time he was in his early sixties. The rumor that he left because he couldn't get cell phone service is untrue. As you can see (especially if you blow up the photo) Tharp's home is made from a hollowed out Sequoia log. Inside there's a table, cot, and a fireplace. Cozy, if a little drafty.




This is the Grizzly Giant, a massive and finely gnarled Sequoia in the Mariposa Grove in southern Yosemite.
Some of the Giant's branches would make respectable trees in their own right. One of the first people to explore and publicize this grove was Galen Clark. He came here in 1853, 39 years old, given six months to live by doctors who diagnosed tuberculosis. Clark himself was a little more optimistic...he thought he had about a 50-50 chance of survival. Well, he didn't- he died, 57 years later, in 1910, four days short of his 96th birthday! At least for him, and Tharp, who lived to 84, the Sierra was a healthy place.