![]() Plus, the granite walls converge into a narrow outlet at the bottom of the valley – the perfect location for a dam. The glacially-carved U-shaped valley floor maximizes the amount of water stored in the reservoir. The same features that make Hetch Hetchy Valley so spectacular also make it an ideal location for a dam. Building the Hetch Hetchy Damīut how did the dam get to be here? Could you imagine building a dam inside a national park today? As of 2013, the water storage and hydroelectric power supplied by the Hetch Hetchy Project serviced an estimated 2.6 million people in the San Francisco Bay Area. And, as you might imagine, it produces some of the cleanest municipal water in the United States. ![]() The reservoir supplies water for the city of San Francisco, so there is no recreational boating or swimming allowed. The water winds between granite features like Kolana Rock and Hetch Hetchy Dome. #DAM 20 KILOMETRE DRIVE NORTH. HEAD FULL#When you’re standing at the shore overlooking what appears to be a lake, picture yourself looking down into a verdant valley filled with the tall native grasses that give the valley its name.Īt full capacity, the reservoir stretches eight miles (13 km) upstream of the O’Shaughnessy Dam. The surface of the water hides an additional 300 feet of granite cliffs and once-upon-a-time waterfalls within its depths. Gleason courtesy of the Sierra Club.įor all the similarities between Hetch Hetchy Valley and Yosemite Valley, there is one enormous difference – the Hetch Hetchy reservoir. This 1910 view shows Kolana Rock and Tueeulala Falls in the background. We have historic photographs to remind us of what Hetch Hetchy Valley looked like before the dam was built. ![]() While you’re at it, plan to add to the historic flavor of this route with a stop the Northern Mariposa County History Center. His path roughly follows the John Muir Highway – State Highway 132 that runs from Highway 49 in Coulterville up through Greeley Hill before connecting back into Highway 120 before Buck Meadows and the turn-off to Hetch Hetchy. If you’re up for a driving adventure, try taking a little extra time to retrace parts of the route John Muir described in his book, “My First Summer in the Sierra”. From the turn-off, the road winds for 16.5 miles up the old Hetch Hetchy railroad grade (26.5 km) to the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, passing many lonely trails along the way. To get to Hetch Hetchy, turn north off Highway 120 onto Evergreen Road about 1 mile (2.2 km) outside the Big Oak Flat Entrance gate, and 12.5 miles (20 km) east of the small community of Buck Meadows. Photo: Kim Lawson Getting to Hetch HetchyĪlthough Hetch Hetchy is included within the boundaries of Yosemite National Park, the entrance is separate from the rest of the park. If you delight in getting off the well-beaten path, or if you are looking for a peaceful natural retreat, it’s perfection.Įven a short stroll from the car gives a magnificent view of the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir from the O’Shaughnessy Dam. ![]() Instead, the magnificence of a valley often described as Yosemite Valley’s slightly smaller twin takes center stage. There is no Starbucks here – no daily parade of tour buses and RVs. Only a tiny proportion of Yosemite’s visitors explore this out-of-the-way corner of the national park. John Muir once described Hetch Hetchy Valley as, “a grand landscape garden, one of Nature’s rarest and most precious mountain temples.”Įven in the summer when Yosemite Valley is being explored by visitors from around the world, Hetch Hetchy remains an oasis of relative calm. In the foreground, the deep still water of Hetch Hetchy Reservoir reflects sunshine, clouds and the proud shadows of the surrounding mountains. The falls roar in spring and early summer. In the distance, long white plumes of water cascade hundreds of feet down from rocky heights. ![]() Rounding the corner and catching the first glimpses of Hetch Hetchy Valley reveals the play of light on water. ![]()
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