Buckeye Flats and Potwisha Campgrounds in the foothills of Sequoia National Park

Buckeye Flats Campground

During a spring visit to Sequoia National Park, temperatures in the high country can still be quite cold. Night time temperatures can fall below freezing and there will be snow on the ground in places. While that may not sound pleasant, camping in the foothills during this time is perfect. There are two campgrounds to choose from. Both offer plenty of shade and mild evening temperatures.

Potwisha Campground is open year round. It is just four miles from the Ash Mountain Entrance (the one visitors approaching for Los Angeles would use) and sports 42 first-come first-serve sites. There are fire pits, picnic tables, and bear boxes at each site and flush toilets at the facility.

The campsite is adjacent to the Marble Fork of the Kaweah River and serves as the trailhead to Marble Falls. At 2100 feet, Potwisha is hot in summer, snow-free in the winter, and perfect in the spring and fall. Sequoia National Park’s main attraction, the Giant Forest Sequoia Grove is a twelve mile drive away.

Potwisha Campground

Potwisha Campground has a dump station and accommodates RVs (for those who camp that way). Otherwise, take a look at Buckeye Flats Campground which is 2.8 miles from Potwisha with 28 sites and similar amenities.

Buckeye Flats sits just uphill of the middle fork of the Kaweah River, whose soothing waters will serenade campers to sleep at night until the birds sing them awake in the morning. The campsites are decently spaced, but a bit neighborly. The large well-lit flush toilet bathrooms are quite civilized. The fluorescents are kept on 24 hours a day, which hardly seems like the eco-friendly practice the park should be advocating, but the bright beacon does assist those middle of the night trips to the bathroom.

A short hike to Paradise Creek departs from the campground and should be visited by anyone staying in the foothills. While the waters of the Kaweah River are active and violent, the aptly named Paradise Creek offers several swimming holes that are perfectly relaxing.

The Kaweah River flowing past Buckeye Flats

Check out this slideshow for more images of the Kaweah River near Buckeye Flats

The Middle Fork Trailhead is 1.3 miles east of the Buckeye Flats. From here one can hike to the falls at Panther Creek and beyond into all of the Sierras.

Both campgrounds are $18 a night. To enter Sequoia National Park, visitors will have to pay an entrance fee. Buckeye Flats is less-crowded and the proximity to the Kaweah River and Paradise Creek make it quite favorable.  For more on these and other campgrounds, visit the Sequoia National Park website.

To get to these campgrounds: From LA, take the 5 North to the 99 North. After 96 miles, take the 198 East toward Visalia. The 198 leads right to the park, where it becomes the Generals Highway. An entrance fee is charged to access the park. Four miles into the park, cross over the Marble Fork of the Kaweah River and Potwisha Campground is on the left. A couple miles further up the Generals Highway is Hospital Rock, where a right turns leads east 0.6 miles on a narrow paved road to Buckeye Flats. This is a 225-mile drive from LA and will take between 3.5 and 4 hours.

View Hiking the Sierra Nevadas in a larger map

	You might also enjoy:
	Atwell Mill and Cold Springs Campgrounds in the Mineral King Region of Sequoia National Park South of Potwisha and Buckeye Flats, this other pair offers a remote sylvan retreat for those eager for the trails of Mineral King.
	Giant Sequoia National Monument South of Sequoia proper, Quaking Aspen Campground provides great access to the Sequoia trees and trails of this national monument.
	Golden Trout Wilderness The campgrounds at Horseshoe Meadow are a good place to acclimate before hiking to the beautiful lakes and peaks in the Inyo National Forest and eastern Sequoia National Park.
	Los Padres National Forest Just a short drive from the city of Ojai, Wheeler Gorge Campground lies at the base of the beautiful Los Padres Range. Backpackers may prefer to camp at nearby Sespe Creek.
	Joshua Tree National Park This national Park has several great campground and even more great trails.
	Mojave National Preserve Less developed that Joshua Tree to the south, Mojave National Preserve offers both traditional campgrounds and rustic roadside camping where one can enjoy desert seclusion with all the comforts of car camping.