There’s progress at Hetch Hetchy! Hooray!
The optimist say the glass is half full, while the pessimist says it is half empty. Choose one or the other if you must, but the glass is filling up.
We’ve heard separately from the National Park Service and San Francisco that the City is funding several visitor improvements at Hetch Hetchy, including:
- Providing potable water and sanitation to the campground;
- Replacing a bridge at Wapama Falls; and
- Repairing the boat ramp.
Campground: The Raker Act, passed a little over 100 years ago, requires San Francisco to provide water to the campground at Hetch Hetchy. Water is available, but it is not potable. San Francisco has finally agreed to provide both water and sanitation to the location, and hopes to have the project completed in 18 months.
Restore Hetch Hetchy has asked the National Park Service to allow all visitors to stay at the campground, rather than limiting its use to people leaving for or returning from a backpacking trip – and we are cautiously optimistic the policy will be changed. Another challenge is to find funds for rudimentary improvements to and perhaps modest expansion of the campground.
It’s a long walk from the campground to the nearest potable water – located adjacent to San Francisco’s exclusive cabins (more on those later!).
Wapama Bridge: As we have reported previously, the first of four bridges at Wapama Falls is unsafe to cross during periods of peak snowmelt – four hikers have been swept off the bridge to their deaths over the last two decades. And because that first bridge is just beyond a rock outcropping, it is not possible to see the falls up close when it is at its most spectacular.
Funding for the bridge has been available for a few years. The National Park Service hopes to complete in in summer of 2024.
Crossing the bridges at Wapama can be a wet and exhilarating experience. But at some point it is simply unwise. (click for larger image).
Boat Ramp: The boat ramp has been out of commission for some time, and neither the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission nor the National Park Service has been able to use it for research or rescue. We are happy it will be fixed.
There are no plans at present to allow visitors to explore the canyon by boat as we have requested and as Congress expected when it passed the Raker Act. We are continuing to encourage the National Park Service to change their policy so visitors can get a better views of the entire canyon as well as day-trip access for hikers, fishermen and rock climbers to locations along the reservoir’s perimeter.
Boat rentals are available at East Bay MUD’s Pardee Reservoir, downslope and north of Hetch Hetchy. EBMUD is known for delivering high quality water to its customers.
We are happy that San Francisco has funded these improvements. Restore Hetch Hetchy continues to work with the City and National Park Service to improve the visitor experience, which we believe is a key element to building support for the valley’s restoration.