Wapama Falls (Hetch Hetchy)
Hetch Hetchy, Yosemite · near Groveland · Sierra Nevada / Yosemite
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- moderate
- Route type
- out-and-back
- Distance
- 5 miles
- Elevation gain
- 800 ft
- Time needed
- day
- Best season
- Spring for peak falls (April–May) · The quiet alternative to the Valley · Lower elevation, longer season
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- No
- How the permit works
- No permit. Hetch Hetchy has its own entrance (O'Shaughnessy Dam) with restricted hours (day-use only, gate closes at night). Check current gate hours. Far fewer crowds than Yosemite Valley.
- How hard the permit is to get
- 1 of 5
What is here
- Features
- Yosemite Valley's quiet twin · Wapama Falls footbridges · O'Shaughnessy Dam & reservoir · Cliffs and water at Sierra scale · Far fewer crowds
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Not permitted
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Hiking detail
- Intl tip
- Hetch Hetchy has its own entrance off Hwy 120 near Groveland, separate from the main park — and day-use-only gate hours (it closes at night), so plan accordingly. Spring is best for the waterfalls. Groveland is the charming gateway town. The lack of crowds here, in a valley this grand, is Hetch Hetchy's quiet miracle.
The guide
Hetch Hetchy is the Yosemite Valley that most visitors never see — a glacially-carved twin valley, dammed in 1923 to create San…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Wapama Falls (Hetch Hetchy) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.947, -119.787