THE ROUTE
From the pullout, cross the street and head down a dry slope, colored by wildflowers in spring and parched in fall. After a brief traverse to the right, the trail enters cool forest cover. You are beneath a canopy of incense cedars and Douglas firs and beside a cascading creek. The sheltered draw that the trail follows contrasts sharply with the dry scrubby slopes you drove past along Hetch Hetchy Road.
This trail has not been updated, a nice way to note that it has not been regraded in recent decades. Instead, it drops at an approximate rate of 1,000 feet in 1 mile, twice as steeply as most switchbacking trails in the Sierra. There are a few big steps and simply a persistent grade. Take your time, especially if your knees bother you. You continue down, never far from the creek, weaving in and out of the denser conifer cover in the riparian zone and the oaks that grow on the drier slopes. In spring you will find some beautiful low-elevation flowers, including wild ginger. And suddenly the trail abruptly turns to the left (0.8 mile from start) and then flattens, indicating that you have reached Poopenaut Valley.
You now approach a large meadow, through which the creek you were following forms a deep channel. As you enter the opening, the trail peters out. USGS topo maps indicate that it continues along the western meadow edge to the riverbank, but equally obvious tracks cut across the meadow. In spring, when the ground will be marshy, you will select the left-hand option, both to stay dry and avoid damaging the meadow. In fall and winter, all choices are acceptable and walking through the tall, dry grass is appealing. Either way, you will shortly reach the river’s edge. In spring you will be met by a raging torrent, while late season you will find delightful sandbanks for a picnic and a quiet river for swimming (1.2 miles). But the water will be cold, for it is released from the chilly depths of Hetch Hetchy Reservoir a few miles upstream. Faint use trails that head upstream along the bank are animal tracks that rapidly become difficult to discern—do not be tempted to follow them. Return to your car the way you descended, taking your time and drinking plenty of water (2.4 miles).
TO THE TRAILHEAD
GPS Coordinates: N37° 54.614′ W119° 48.877′
Turn north from CA 120 onto Evergreen Road. This junction is located 1.1 miles west of the Yosemite entrance station at Big Oak Flat and 22.5 miles east of Groveland. (Note the sign with the current schedule for Hetch Hetchy day-use hours to avoid waiting behind a closed gate 15 minutes down the road.) After winding along Evergreen Road for 7.2 miles, you reach a T-junction with Hetch Hetchy Road. Turn right (east) and drive past Camp Mather, beneath a tall gateway, and past a gate that is locked each night. Beyond the T-junction, 1.3 miles later, you reach the Hetch Hetchy entrance station; here you are required to register your car. Continue along Hetch Hetchy Road for another 3.9 miles. As you complete a large curve, keep your eyes open for a small turnout on the right side of the road and a metal sign on the left side of the road indicating the start of the trail to Poopenaut Valley.
3 Wapama Falls
Trailhead Location: Hetch Hetchy Reservoir
Trail Use: Hiking
Distance & Configuration: 4.8-mile out-and-back
Elevation Range: 3,813 feet at the start, with a cumulative elevation change of ±600 feet
Facilities: Water and toilets are not located at the trailhead but instead along the road 0.3 mile before the dam. Stop briefly at a small parking area after a series of ranger cabins. Water and toilets are also present at the entrance to the backpacker campground, farther along the one-way loop road. There is even a drinking fountain on the dam.
Highlights: Impressive rock walls and body of water, as well as Kolana Rock’s striking form
DESCRIPTION
The nearly level walk to Wapama Falls is especially rewarding in spring, when the path is lined with wildflowers and Tueeulala and Wapama falls drench the trail. Year-round it is a scenic walk above the banks of Hetch Hetchy Reservoir.
THE ROUTE
From the parking area, descend alongside the road to the dam. Turn left and cross the O’Shaughnessy Dam, stopping to read the excellent information placards and enjoy the view. The steep dome overshadowing the right shore of Hetch Hetchy Reservoir is Kolana Rock. The gushes of water cascading down Wapama Falls to the east and the smaller Tueeulala Falls to the west (left) are impossible to miss in spring, while in fall Tueeulala will certainly be dry and Wapama Falls a distant trickle. Staring at the steep walls and narrow body of water is of course an unnatural vista, and as much as I wish that I were able to descend into Hetch Hetchy Valley as John Muir did, I find that the dark-blue reservoir and granite walls are a beautiful panorama.
Once across the dam, you enter a tunnel, which cuts through an otherwise impassable cliff. It has recently been updated with new lighting and a flatter floor. Beyond the tunnel (0.3 mile from start), you are on an old road, created during the construction of the dam. When full, the water will be just a few feet below the trail, but this is a rare occurrence, and you will almost always see the bare, bleached talus piles that form a bathtub ring around the reservoir.
You begin your walk beneath live oaks, manzanitas, and bay laurel trees. Poison oak is abundant at the perimeters, but the trail is plenty wide here to avoid it. Wildflowers, including harlequin lupines, color the path’s edges in spring. Note one location where a recent rockfall has cleared a strip of vegetation above the trail and sent boulders tumbling onto the trail. Gaining little elevation, you continue along the pleasant trail to a junction where the left-hand branch climbs to Laurel Lake and Lake Vernon, while you turn right on the trail to Wapama Falls and beyond to Rancheria Falls (1.0 mile).
Bearing right, you alternatively cross open slabs and pass small patches of meadow growing in an incredibly thin soil layer. In spring water pools on the underlying rock, creating miniature wetlands with beautiful flower displays, while by summer the soil and vegetation are parched. The few trees present, manzanitas and foothill pines, undoubtedly have their roots in cracks in the rock, accessing deeper, moister soil.
Soon you cross an unnamed seasonal tributary, whose waters cascade down the broken cliffs above and often straight over the trail. Beyond, the flat slabs transition into a steeper slope. For the next 3 miles, the trail follows a ledge system, a corridor through the otherwise impassable slabs. Shortly you cross the base of Tueeulala Falls on a wooden footbridge (2.0 miles); this waterfall flows only during peak runoff, for it is actually a branch of Falls Creek (the Wapama Falls creek) that fills only during the highest water conditions. (USGS topo maps mark Tueeulala Falls at the location of the previous tributary.) Continuing along, you find yourself under dense forest cover in places and on open talus slopes elsewhere. Stretches of trail have been recently rebuilt, and you can savor the beautiful stonework on the path. A final short descent takes you to the five bridges that cross Falls Creek as it splays across a giant boulder fan at the base of Wapama Falls (2.4 miles). In autumn you must cross the bridges to even see the waterfall, for the water actually cascades down the east-facing side of a corner. In spring you will be aware of the falls before you reach the bridges, for there will be a thundering sound and drenching spray. On one occasion in early June, water was flowing over the bridge and I was taking a shower until I was well beyond the bridges; take care under these conditions, for two people were recently swept off the bridge. Return to your car by the same route (4.8 miles).
Kolana Rock overlooking Hetch Hetchy Reservoir
TO THE TRAILHEAD
GPS Coordinates: N37° 56.789′ W119° 47.257′
Turn north from CA 120 onto Evergreen Road. This junction is located 1.1 miles west of the Yosemite entrance station at Big Oak Flat and 22.5 miles east of Groveland. (Note the sign with the current schedule for Hetch Hetchy day-use hours to avoid waiting behind a