Sentinel, Giant sequoia at Giant Forest Museum Plaza, Sequoia National Park, US
Sentinel is a giant sequoia tree standing near the Giant Forest Museum in Sequoia National Park, California. The tree rises above a paved plaza that connects it to nearby paths, making it one of the more accessible trees in the park.
The Sentinel grew for centuries inside the Giant Forest before the area was set aside as a national park in 1890. That moment marked one of the first times the US government moved to protect a forest on this scale.
The Sentinel stands close to a museum that tells the story of how the Giant Forest came to be protected over time. Visitors can look at exhibits nearby that explain the role of giant sequoias in California's forests.
The Sentinel is reached by paved, flat paths that are accessible for wheelchairs and strollers. It sits just outside the Giant Forest Museum, so it is a natural first stop when visiting that part of the park.
A ruler is embedded directly into the pavement of the plaza, showing the exact width of the trunk at ground level. Visitors can stand next to the markings and compare their own height or arm span to the tree's actual size.
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