Hetch Hetchy Flowers and Waterfalls

Hetch Hetchy Flowers and Falls, May, 1998 by James McGrew

Hetch Hetchy Flowers and Waterfalls, May 1998

Photograph and text by James McGrew

Following a heavy winter snowpack and a cold spring, Sierra streams swelled to a high flood level. I hiked with my wife and daughter to Tueeulala and Wapama Falls for a wonderful nature walk that embodied what inspires me most about Yosemite - the juxtaposition of delicate beauty with awesome grandeur.

Dozens of butterflies flittered among the heaviest flower displays I had ever seen along the trail and we encountered numerous herps including garter snakes, fence lizards, western whiptails and pacific tree frogs.

We were awestruck with Wapama Falls as it thundered and exploded, shaking the ground. White water raced over portions of the trail and surged onto the wooden and steel bridges below the fall. Alone, I walked part way across the series of bridges and trail to see if it was possible to cross with my family. We decided they should wait there. However, I was determined to photograph both falls in one scene, so I sealed my camera in a ziplock bag, and using my tripod for a walking stick, I proceeded into the mist. Upon approaching the highest bridge with water rushing half way up to my knees, I cut a deep gash into my shin as I slipped into a hole where a boulder had been washed out of the trail. However, I was far more concerned with the current which raced around my legs and only three feet away leapt over the trail and joined masses of water which crashed through a gauntlet of boulders before emptying into the reservoir. The fall generated a deafening roar and a high wind filled with icy cold spray. The world seemed to spin as mist raced through the air and water over the ground. My heart pounded as I regained composure to continue on. Somehow I did it, then walked off the trail to find this flowery little piece of warm paradise. Like the lizards we saw earlier, I basked in sun to stop the shivering until I was able to seek out and compose this photograph looking back towards the falls.

Later that day, park entrance station rangers informed me that the flood waters in Yosemite Valley had just washed out portions of the road causing closures to Highways 120 and 140. In addition, the trail I had used to get this photograph was actually supposed to be closed at Wapama Falls due to the dangerously high water.

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James McGrew, 2002
http://www.jamesmcgrewfineart.com/
james@mcgrew-art.com

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