Explore Hetch Hetchy Valley In Yosemite National Park

When most people think of Yosemite National Park, they immediately envision the world-famous landscape of Yosemite Valley. That beautiful drainage, however, has a lesser-known but equally impressive counterpart to the north: the Hetch Hetchy. While you’re enjoying the charms of a Scenic Wonders cabin, make the trek to Hetch Hetchy—and introduce yourself to a whole other side of Yosemite. The Valley Hetch Hetchy Valley, like its famous southern neighbor, owes much of its scenic magnificence to the sculpting of Ice Age glaciers out of the High Sierra. The Tuolumne River, fresh from of its “Grand Canyon” just upstream, is dammed here to form the eight-mile-long Hetch Hetchy Reservoir (an important source of San Francisco's drinking water). Epic granite walls and crags—Hetch Hetchy’s versions of Half Dome and El Capitan—front the reservoir, including Kolana Rock and Hetch Hetchy Dome. Below the dam, the Tuolumne meanders through the Poopenaut Valley and out of the park. Hiking Hetch Hetchy is a hiker’s paradise. Indeed, most of the valley can only be fully appreciated on foot: The entrance road ends at O'Shaughnessy Dam, with trails embarking from there into the backcountry. These routes range widely in length and difficulty: You can ascend the relatively short Lookout Point Trail for a breathtaking Hetch Hetchy panorama, for example, or tackle the 29-mile Laurel/Vernon/Rancheria loop to access high wilderness lakes. Outdoorspeople cherish Hetch Hetchy partly for its comparably low elevation: It offers some of Yosemite’s earliest-season hiking. Waterfalls Those Hetch Hetchy trails lead you to stunning waterfalls. From O’Shaughnessy Dam you can spot 1,400-foot Wapama Falls—or make a 5-mile round-trip hike to its base, on which you’ll also pass some smaller cataracts. Flora and Fauna Lower and drier than Yosemite Valley, Hetch Hetchy Valley introduces you to a unique spectrum of Sierra Nevada plant communities, from manzanita thickets to rocky woodlands of gray pine, black oak and incense-cedar. The chaparral and woods harbor everything from western mastiff bats to black bears. Come explore Hetch Hetchy Valley, Yosemite’s “other” cathedral!

Explore Hetch Hetchy Valley

If you’re looking to explore Hetch Hetchy Valley, start planning your trip with Yosemite’s Scenic Wonders. We offer Yosemite reservations within the gates of the park. With one of our cozy cabins, condominiums, or homes, your Yosemite accommodations will be just minutes from all the wonderful spots in Yosemite. Give us a call at 1-888-YOSEMITE (1-888-967-3648) to learn about our rentals and to make your Yosemite reservations today.

Yosemite National Park Blog

Scenic Wonders’ Yosemite blog provides the latest news related to Yosemite National Park. By reading our blog, you’ll stay up to date on activities, accommodations, and more.   Photo credit: fourTwentyTwo