High Sierra Topix

Yesterday at work I was surfing some of the outdoor websites that I frequently check and I noticed that John Fedak had hiked to Le Conte falls. However, as I flipped through the photos I realized (much like Fedak apparently) that what I had assumed to be Waterwheel Falls may have been Le Conte.

Some research on Google Earth, the Internet and Topo! now lead me to believe that the beautiful falls (with water wheels I might add!) were indeed Le Conte Falls. Searching the internet also showed that lots of people may be confusing LeConte for Waterwheel.

Now that I think about it, I never really "saw" Le Conte Falls on the hike and just assumed that it was one of the less impressive cascades that I noticed through the trees.

It's not that I'm obsessed about it or anything, I'm sure lots of people post about waterfalls at 4:30 in the morning, but I'd just like to know. The trip was amazing and I enjoyed every minute of it, but going to waterwheel was part of the reason we went and I find it frustrating that I didn't actually
see the falls.

So here are two photos; please add your two cents and tell me which waterfall you think I saw.

thanks,

Jason

Since your picture looks a whole lot like http://www.world-of-waterfalls.com/yose ... falls.html I'm guessing you were a bit short of Waterwheel....

Sounds like a common mistake tho. People do that at Rancheria Falls, too - get to the top of the hill, wander over near the river, and say, oh, is that it? and turn around and go back!

Yup, thats LeConte.

I did the same thing

(And didn't realize it until after I had posted that album as Waterwheel and someone corrected me- had to go back and change all the captions)

I agree with the others... I made the same mistake on my first trip down the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne and didn't realize it until I actually got to Waterwheel.

Your pictures are definitely of LeConte. Now you have a reason to go back and hinke the entire length of the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne!

Common mistake, we even had someone argue, with us, this year when they saw us duck in for LeConte. They were dead certain they were correct, and what we were looking at was Waterwheel, and we were wrong. We told them to hike down the trail about 1/4+ of a mile and come back and tell us what they found.
Here is a video I took a couple of years ago. The water was incredibly high that year. I think this was in 2002, but I am not sure.
http://www.ultramicrofiber.com/Yosemite ... nshort.wmv

Wow, incredible footage! Is part 1 of the video Leconte and Part 2 Waterwheel?

Mike

Mike M. wrote:Wow, incredible footage! Is part 1 of the video Leconte and Part 2 Waterwheel?

Mike

Thanks
Part two is still LeConte but from a slightly higher view point. When you head back up to Glen Aulin, about 100 yards up the trail is another view spot that is more or less just above the base and allows you to look down on the falls. I really like it because it gives you a good idea of how big they really are.