The South Fork Merced drains the southwest portion of Yosemite National Park. Its headwaters drain peaks over 10,000 feet in elevation. The river runs roughly west to Wawona (4,000 feet elevation) where it is crossed by Highway 41. From Wawona, the river runs roughly north west for 23 miles to the Main Merced (1,410 feet elevation).
The section from Wawona to the Main Merced was the first of the major multiday Sierra class V trips done by the Billygoat Boaters. Because of its easy access (no hiking) and fantastic rapids, this section has become very popular over the years.
This river also provides ample carnage every year to boaters who make small mistakes or are not quite up to the challenge. Besides getting stuck in holes, boaters have been pinned, flushed through seives and had their boats swept away by rising water in the night. Many boaters have hiked/crawled/bushwacked their way out of this canyon after getting spanked or loosing their boats. Hillsides thick with manzanita, buck brush, poison oak and other thick or prickly flora make cross country travel almost impossible. There is a trail near the half way point, but hikers will have to travel at river level to get to it or get back upstream to Wawona.
For those not interested in class V, it is possible to hike in to Snyder Gulch and cut out all the class V rapids while still gettting a 7-mile-long run with some class IV at the start and class III after that. It is a beautiful canyon with interesting and long rapids. To cut out the class IV and make a class II-only run, you can drive (or hike) the rough road down to Hites Cove (about two miles downstream of Snyder Gulch). The take-out is the same as for doing the full run. See below for directions to these intermediate river access locations.
Getting There
Take-out: From Yosemite Valley drive west on Highway 140 to the bridge across the SF Merced at Savage's Trading Post. About 40 minutes drive. The take-out is outside of Yosemite National Park.
Put-in: Drive back east on Highway 140 into Yosemite Valley then turn south on Highway 41 to Wawona. A bridge crosses the SF Merced and there is ample parking in the vicinity of the river. This put-in is within Yosemite National Park.
Fees: There is a per car fee to enter Yosemite National Park. A single use permit is good for 7 days. Go to the Yosemite National Park website to see the current fee options.
Hiking Trail access and escape: Topo maps show hiking trails along several sections of the river. The condition of these trails is unknown to this author and probably vary in quality and usability. A trail comes down on river left at about mile five. This trail follows the river downstream but up high until mile seven where it crosses and then follows the river downstream on river right to near mile ten where it ends. At mile seven, a branch trail climbs to Highway 41. At mile 13.5, a trail from Peachtree Bar starts downstream on river right. This trail crosses to river left just before Snyder Gulch and goes up that to the Hite Cove road. The Hite Cove 4-wheel drive road comes down to the river at about mile 17.
To get to the Snyder Gulch hike-in access: From the take-out on Highway 140, backtrack towards Mariposa, then turn left onto Triangle Road. At the intersection of Triangle, Darrah and Jerseydale Road, turn left (north) onto Jerseydale Rd. After nearly 4 miles turn north onto Scott Rd, and follow it to Hite's Cove Rd. Make sure you have a good map when trying to find these roads and trails. The best option is to park at the Snyder Gulch trailhead. Any regular car can reach this spot. From here hike about three miles down the Snyder Gulch trail to the river at Snyder Gulch. This hike gains two miles of wonderful long class 4 rapids between Snyder Gulch and Hite's Cove. This trail faces east and gets full morning sun, so it is best to get a very early start. There are several sections of thick poison oak along the trail, so carry soap to wash off when you reach the river.
To get to Hites Cove access: You can drive down the Hite's Cove Road until you reach the river, but this requires a high clearance vehicle and 4-wheel drive is recommended. It is a very rough road and slow going. It will probably take over an hour to drive to the river from the trailhead. This also reduces the length of the run by over two miles as compare to hiking in to Snyder Gulch (and this cuts out the class IV rapids too).
Other Information Sources: _The Best Whitewater in California (3rd ed.)_, by Lars Holbek and Chuck Stanley, 1998.
David Maurier has a good description of the run, plus some nice pictures.
Boof.com often has recent info on this and many other runs in the Sierras.
NickyB Blog Short trip report and Video
Epic report by Shanna
Photos by Nate Hunkapiller.
Also see:
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite Water Activities