What's on in Kings Canyon National Park, United States through the year

Busy — Winter / Christmas break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Winter road closures and chains (16 Nov – 21 Apr)

Quiet — one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Winter road closures and chains (16 Nov – 21 Apr)

Busy — Spring break in United States

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Winter road closures and chains (16 Nov – 21 Apr)

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

• Opening

  Kings Canyon Scenic Byway open

  22 Apr – 15 Nov · usuallyTrail season

  Highway 180 down into the canyon to Cedar Grove opens around the fourth Friday in April and shuts again in mid-November, so Zumwalt Meadow, Roads End and the deepest part of the canyon exist for about seven months a year. Source ↗

Still on: Winter road closures and chains (16 Nov – 21 Apr)

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

• Nature

  Snowmelt on the Kings River

  1 May – 5 Jul · usuallyHigh waterRisk

  The river runs full and loud through late spring and drowns people every year — the water is snow that fell a week ago and the rocks beside it are wet. Roaring River Falls is at its best and its most dangerous at the same moment. Source ↗

Still on: Kings Canyon Scenic Byway open (22 Apr – 15 Nov (usually))

Busy — Summer break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in June.

Still on: Kings Canyon Scenic Byway open (22 Apr – 15 Nov (usually)), Snowmelt on the Kings River (1 May – 5 Jul (usually))

Busy — Summer break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  High country trail season

  5 Jul – 25 Sep · usuallyBook early

  The passes above Cedar Grove and on the Rae Lakes loop are only reliably snow-free from early July, which is why the wilderness permit quota is fought over for exactly these weeks. A big snow year pushes it later. Source ↗

Still on: Kings Canyon Scenic Byway open (22 Apr – 15 Nov (usually)), Snowmelt on the Kings River (1 May – 5 Jul (usually))

Busy — Summer break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Hazard

  Wildfire smoke season

  1 Aug – 5 Oct · usuallyClosures

  Smoke from fires in the Sierra and up the Central Valley fills the canyon and can shut the park outright, as it has more than once. Late summer is the gamble you take for the best trail conditions of the year. Source ↗

Still on: Kings Canyon Scenic Byway open (22 Apr – 15 Nov (usually)), High country trail season (5 Jul – 25 Sep (usually))

Busy — Summer break in United States

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Kings Canyon Scenic Byway open (22 Apr – 15 Nov (usually)), High country trail season (5 Jul – 25 Sep (usually)), Wildfire smoke season (1 Aug – 5 Oct (usually))

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: Kings Canyon Scenic Byway open (22 Apr – 15 Nov (usually)), Wildfire smoke season (1 Aug – 5 Oct (usually))

Busy — Thanksgiving break in United States

• Closure

  Winter road closures and chains

  16 Nov – 21 Apr

  The canyon road is gated and what stays open — Grant Grove and the road up from Fresno — needs chains in the boot whether or not it is snowing when you set off. Rangers turn cars back at the entrance for not carrying them. Source ↗

Still on: Kings Canyon Scenic Byway open (22 Apr – 15 Nov (usually))

Busy — Winter / Christmas break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Nation's Christmas Tree ceremony

  6–16 Dec · usuallyChristmas & New Year

  A wreath is laid at the foot of the General Grant tree on a Sunday in early December, a ceremony that has run since the 1920s. It is a short service in the snow among sequoias with almost nobody else in the grove. Source ↗

Still on: Winter road closures and chains (16 Nov – 21 Apr)