Chilnualna Falls: The Hotel's Destination Hike
Near Wawona, California
From Wawona, a trail climbs steeply through mixed-conifer forest to one of the most rewarding waterfall sequences in Yosemite. Chilnualna Falls drops in a series of cascades totaling nearly seven hundred feet of combined vertical drop. The lower falls are the most dramatic and easiest to reach.
The upper falls require a longer climb but reward the hiker with views down into the deep gorge and out across the southern Sierra. The lower trail was built in eighteen seventy by Albert Bruce and John Washburn, members of the family that ran the Wawona Hotel, specifically to give hotel guests a destination hike within easy reach. The upper extension was completed in eighteen ninety five by the trail builder John Conway.
The origin of the name Chilnualna is uncertain, and the meanings offered include leaping water and many rocks. Some say it means something like leaping water. Others suggest it refers to the many rocks in the streambed.
The true etymology has been lost. The waterfall is fed by Chilnualna Creek, which drains the high country above Wawona Dome. In a heavy snow year the falls run with extraordinary power well into June.
By late summer the flow often diminishes, but the gorge and forest remain beautiful regardless of season.
