Notes: Calaveras King is the current national champion (596 points) and 2nd largest-known sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana). It was the largest-known sugar pine from May 2015 until August 25, 2024 when naturalists Carl S. Casey, Martin Crawford, and Michael W. Taylor measured Mossy Creek Giant in Merced Grove in Yosemite National Park.

Drive: Calaveras King is 123 mi (198 km) east of San Francisco near the community of Arnold.

From U.S. Interstate 5 in Stockton, transfer to California State Route 4 East. Drive east 74 mi (119 km) on California State Route 4 East to the entrance to Calaveras Big Trees State Park. Turn right onto Big Trees Parkway (also known as Walter W. Smith Memorial Parkway), pass the park entrance station (entrance fee required), and drive southeast 8.4 mi (13.5 km) on Big Trees Parkway to the South Grove Trailhead parking lot.

Hike: From the trailhead at the southern edge of the parking lot, hike south 0.2 mi (0.3 km) on Beaver Creek Trail, past the junction with the northern half of the Beaver Creek Trail loop (which leads to the Beaver Creek Picnic Area), to the junction with South Grove Trail. Turn right at the trail junction and hike south then northeast 2.2 mi (3.5 km) on South Grove Trail, across the bridge over Beaver Creek, past the junction with Bradley Grove Trail, across Beaver Creek Road, past the (western and eastern) junctions with South Grove Loop Trail, to the trail exit point near 38.24742 -120.24413. Leave the trail here and hike east 150 ft (46 m) to Calaveras King.

View Calaveras King Tree location in Google Maps

Panorama: Click panorama to take a virtual tour of Calaveras King Tree

Photos: Pictures of Calaveras King Tree taken from different sides