Yosemite National Park, CA
A full-day climb from Hetch Hetchy to the North Mountain view
Overview
North Mountain Lookout Trail is a 26.7-mile out-and-back from the Hetch Hetchy Trailhead at O’Shaughnessy Dam, climbing about 3,503 feet to North Mountain. It’s a hard, full-day outing; allow about 11.5 to 12.5 hours, and remember that every mile you hike out has to be walked back.
Parkwolf’s verdictIs this the hike for you?Map & elevation
Plan your hike
“Ahead is O'Shaughnessy Dam at Hetch Hetchy, with reservoir water between steep granite walls. For a short visit, the paved dam viewpoint gives you the broad scene and waterfall views without a hike.”
Yosemite Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Yosemite National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Yosemite audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Hetch Hetchy and O'Shaughnessy Dam“Ahead is O'Shaughnessy Dam at Hetch Hetchy, with reservoir water between steep granite walls. For a short visit, the paved dam viewpoint gives you the broad scene and waterfall views without a hike.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Yosemite Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“We just drove through Yosemite and it made our trip listening to this app as we drove through. Like having a tour guide in the car with you.”
Trail guide
From the reservoir access, the route follows the Miguel Meadow Fire Road through steep switchbacks. About six miles in, it joins the named North Mountain trail; from there it’s roughly 7.2 miles one way to the high point. A 14.4-mile figure describes the out-and-back from Miguel Meadow and leaves out the approach from Hetch Hetchy. This guide follows the full route from the public reservoir access. A flush toilet is listed at Miguel Meadow; no water refill point was verified along the way, so carry what you need for the full day.
The payoff is a high view back toward Miguel Meadows. I couldn’t confirm whether a lookout structure is still standing or open, so plan around the mountain and its view rather than a guaranteed tower visit. This North Mountain continuation is lightly documented and doesn’t appear among the usual Hetch Hetchy hikes; carry a detailed map and confirm the turn off the fire road before committing to the long climb.
Wildlife
732 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
1,747 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
332 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
11 sightingsPeregrine FalconMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
276 sightingsPikaMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
677 sightingsYellow-bellied MarmotMost seen around 8 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Yosemite. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ChallengingLaurel Lake Trail14.2 mi · 8.5 hr · At the trailheadA strenuous out-and-back to a quiet lake above Hetch Hetchy.
ChallengingLake Vernon Trail19.1 mi · 10 hr · At the trailheadA long, exposed climb ends at Lake Vernon’s granite shore.
ModerateWapama Falls Trail5 mi · 3 hr · At the trailheadWalk a reservoir shore to bridges beneath Yosemite’s Wapama Falls.
ChallengingMiguel Meadow, Lake Eleanor and Laurel Lake Loop26.2 mi · 14 hr · At the trailheadA remote Hetch Hetchy loop linking Lake Eleanor and Laurel Lake.
ChallengingRancheria Falls Trail13.4 mi · 7 hr · 0.2 mi awayA long reservoir-side hike to the falls beyond Wapama.
ChallengingLaurel Lake, Lake Vernon and Rancheria Falls Loop29 mi · 1 day · 0.3 mi awayGranite lakes, an exposed ridge, and a waterfall on one long loop.
ChallengingSmith Peak Trail13.5 mi · 7 hr · 1.5 mi awayA long climb to Hetch Hetchy's highest summit.
ChallengingPoopenaut Valley Trail2.5 mi · 3.5 hr · 2.9 mi awayPoopenaut’s steep drop to the Tuolumne, with a harder climb back
Sight · 0.1 mi awayO'Shaughnessy Dam and Hetch Hetchy ReservoirWalk the dam for reservoir views and a trail toward two waterfalls.
Sight · 1.7 mi awayWapama FallsA granite tunnel and reservoir hike lead to a 1,400-foot waterfall.
Lodging · 9.2 mi awayWhite Wolf LodgeA remote cabin base near two high-country lake hikes.
Campground · 9.3 mi awayWhite Wolf CampgroundA quiet forest base near the Lukens and Harden Lakes trailheads.
Sight · 9.6 mi awaySiesta LakeA quiet alpine lake with forest reflections.Parkwolf’s Yosemite ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
