SEKI Wilderness Permit — Grant Grove — Don Cecil (West)

Don Cecil West (Grant Grove): what makes it different

Don Cecil West is the top end of the Don Cecil Trail, reached by driving the Big Meadows Road in Sequoia National Forest rather than by climbing from Cedar Grove. The permit is for walking down into Kings Canyon, the first legal camp is 1 mile east of Summit Meadow, and Lookout Peak is a short walk from the road.^1,8,7

Getting to the start

Recreation.gov says this entry starts in the national forest at the end of Big Meadows Road near Summit Meadow and Lookout Peak. Park along the road, which the listing names as Forest Route 14S11. Permits are issued at the Kings Canyon Visitor Center, which keeps 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. hours in the quota season.^1,2

The road turns off the Generals Highway roughly halfway between Grant Grove and Lodgepole. QT Luong, who drove it in 2011, counted about 15 miles, with pavement giving way to dirt past a large campground, and said a regular car could manage with care. The American Southwest guide puts the drive to Summit Meadow at about 13 unpaved miles from Highway 198. Treat both as rough distances.^8,7

Luong turned around at the road end, and within a quarter mile at a prominent bend he found a large turnout on the east side that serves as parking.⁸

NPS says Big Meadows Road usually closes with snow and is not plowed, and that it leads to campgrounds, trailheads and a pack station. NPS logged it open on June 18, 2026.^4,5

The first leg

The first legal camp is 1 mile east of Summit Meadow, per Recreation.gov. The American Southwest guide puts Summit Meadow at about 8,000 feet and calls the summit of Lookout Peak 0.4 mile beyond it by an easy path.^1,7

The American Southwest guide says the upper path meets the forest track at the edge of Summit Meadow. Noah's blog, reading the route from the bottom, says the trail meets the top of Forest Route 14S11, which it calls Horse Corral Road, right at the park boundary at the base of Lookout Peak.⁹

Terrain and difficulty

Recreation.gov calls the trail a historic access route to Cedar Grove that is hot, strenuously steep and lightly used, and says to start early. Going this way you start high and drop. The American Southwest guide counts a 3,300 foot change over 6 miles between Summit Meadow and the canyon floor.^1,7

Noah's blog counted 4.9 miles from the Cedar Grove trailhead to the end of the maintained park trail, shorter than the 6 miles the American Southwest guide gives to Summit Meadow, and warned that the path is hard to read near the top and can need a little route finding.^9,7

The Forest Service lists Lookout Peak at 8,531 feet, on the line between the national forest and the park, with radio equipment on top. Its trailhead page says there is no water, no toilet and no picnic tables.^6,8

Rules specific to this entry point

Groups are held to 8 people and the camping limit is two nights, per Recreation.gov. NPS also lists the Don Cecil Trail among its 8 person off-trail limits.^1,3

The division text for Don Cecil West prints no daily quota line, unlike its east end, which lists 8 people and none reservable. We have not found a published daily figure for this entry, so none is shown.¹

The Forest Service page for the Lookout Peak trailhead said Site Closed when we read it on its September 24, 2026 update, with fire danger very high and a fire restriction alert in force. It gives the Hume Lake Ranger District number, 559-338-2251.⁶

Where it leads

Lookout Peak sits beside the road end. Luong walked from the turnout to the summit on a steep, easy, unmaintained trail of under half a mile and looked west into the glacial trench of Cedar Grove. He picked midday for the light and had the top to himself.⁸

Summit Meadow joins the forest tracks of Giant Sequoia National Monument. The American Southwest guide says Don Cecil was the main way into Kings Canyon until Highway 180 opened in 1939, used by shepherds, ranchers and early explorers including John Muir.⁷

The whole Don Cecil descent to Cedar Grove can be walked one way from here, ending at the Cedar Grove trailhead where Recreation.gov issues the East permit at Road's End. Noah's blog counts 4.9 miles of maintained park trail below the boundary.^9,1

What trip reports say

QT Luong's Terra Galleria post from January 2012 describes the 2011 drive and short climb. He chose the Big Meadows approach over the roughly 14 mile round trip, climbing about 4,000 feet, that the Cedar Grove side asks for.⁸

Noah's undated blog walked the other direction, up from Cedar Grove, and calls the last part of the climb a moderate class 3 scramble. It describes the final section as sparsely maintained trail toward the telecom equipment, which agrees with Luong's note about a non-maintained path.^9,8

When to go from here

NPS recorded the Don Cecil Trail snow free on June 18, 2026, the same day it logged Big Meadows Road open. The American Southwest guide gives April to November for the trail.^5,7

Because snow closes the road without plowing, the date this entry can be used is set by the road, not by the trail. Recreation.gov warns that the route is hot, so an early start matters in summer.^4,1

Compare with nearby entry points

• Don Cecil East: Don Cecil East is the lower end of the same trail, issued at Road's End in Cedar Grove, with 8 people a day and none reservable. West is the high end, issued at Kings Canyon Visitor Center, and its division text gives no daily number.¹
• Sugarloaf: Sugarloaf also starts from the Big Meadows Road, but it leads into Kings Canyon through the Jennie Lakes Wilderness and sells 25 people a day with 15 reservable. Don Cecil West heads for the Cedar Grove rim.^1,4
• JO Pass: JO Pass is another entry off the same Big Meadows Road system, with 15 people a day and 10 reservable, heading into Sequoia National Park through Jennie Lakes. It is a lake and meadow trip, while Don Cecil West is a one way canyon descent.¹

Sources

1. Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Wilderness Permits, Don Cecil West division, Recreation.gov. Read 2026-10-15.
2. Wilderness Permits & Reservations, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, National Park Service. Read 2026-10-15.
3. Minimum Impact Restrictions, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, National Park Service. Read 2026-10-15.
4. Road Information, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, National Park Service. Read 2026-10-15.
5. Trail Conditions, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, National Park Service. Read 2026-10-15.
6. Lookout Peak Trailhead, Sequoia National Forest, USDA Forest Service. Read 2026-10-15.
7. Don Cecil Trail to Sheep Creek Cascade, Kings Canyon National Park, The American Southwest. Read 2026-10-15.
8. Cedar Grove Rims, Kings Canyon NP, QT Luong, Terra Galleria blog. Read 2026-10-15.
9. Hiking the Don Cecil Trail to Lookout Peak in Kings Canyon National Park, noahawaii. Read 2026-10-15.

Safety & planning

Alternatives to a Don Cecil West permit