Notes: Dedicated on August 28, 2004, Colonel Young Tree was named to honor Colonel Charles Young who, in 1903, served as the first acting superintendent of Sequoia National Park. Then Captain Young and fellow Buffalo soliders from Troops I and M of the United States Army's 9th Cavalry Regiment, managed, maintained, and patrolled the park during the summer of 1903. Young and his men not only protected the park from loggers, poachers, and grazing livestock but also built hiking trails and completed the first wagon roads to Giant Forest and to the base of Moro Rock.

In summer 1903, local civic leaders proposed naming a nearby giant redwood after Colonel Young, but Young insisted they name that tree to honor influential author and educator Booker T. Washington instead.

Drive: Colonel Young is 218 mi (351 km) southeast of San Francisco near Fresno.

Northbound: From U.S. Interstate 5 North, transfer to California State Route 99 North toward Bakersfield. Drive north 97 mi (156 km) on California State Route 99 and transfer to California State Route 198 East toward Visalia. Drive east 57 mi (92 km) on California State Route 198 (Generals Highway), past Four Guardsmen, and turn right onto Crescent Meadow Road.

Southbound: From U.S. Interstate 5 South in Sacramento, transfer to U.S. Highway 50 East toward South Lake Tahoe. Drive east 1.7 mi (2.7 km) on U.S. Highway 50 and transfer to California State Highway 99 South. Near Fresno, transfer to California State Route 180 East. Drive east 56 mi (90 km) on California State Route 180, and turn right onto California State Route 198 West. Drive south 29 mi (47 km) on California State Route 198 (Generals Highway) and turn left onto Crescent Meadow Road.

Drive south 0.8 mi (1.3 km) on Crescent Meadow Road, past Booker T. Washington, and turn left into the Auto Log parking lot.

Road Warning: Crescent Meadow Road is open from late May to early November depending on snow levels. During summer (late May to early September) Sequoia Shuttle bus operations, Crescent Meadow Road is closed to private vehicles on weekends and holidays from 9:00 AM through late afternoon. When Crescent Meadow Road is closed, park in the lot near Giant Forest Museum and walk Crescent Meadow Road to Auto Log and hike from there to Colonel Young or take the free Sequoia Shuttle (Gray Route 2) from Giant Forest Museum to the Moro Rock parking lot and hike from there to Auto Log and Colonel Young.

Hike: From the trailhead at the northern edge of the parking lot, hike north 0.1 mi (0.2 km) north on an unnamed trail to Colonel Young.

View Colonel Young Tree location in Google Maps

Panorama: Click panorama to take a virtual tour of Colonel Young Tree

Photos: Pictures of Colonel Young Tree taken from different sides