Where is it?
The Tuolumne River starts on the highest point in Yosemite and flows through the Sierra to the central valley in California. The most commonly rafted section of the river is just outside the boundary of Yosemite National Park near the town of Groveland. It's about a three hour driver from the San Francisco Bay Area.
What are the rapids like?
During the spring snowmelt from April through June in most years, the rapids are fierce. There are pools in between the big rapids large enough to get ready for the next rapid. At these higher flows, you'll get a faceful of water in most of the rapids and need to make moves in order to miss large hydralics which can flip boats. When the snowmelt stops sometime in June each year, the dams control the flow of water so that we can continue to float the river at lower flows. At these flows, the rapids are a rocky, technical challenge with difficult manuevers and steep drops.
Why the Tuolumne?
Most people run the Tuolumne River for the legendary rapids, but it's the magical canyon that is reason to run this river. The steep walls are green in the spring with wildflowers everywhere. The unique Clavey River meets the Tuolumne in the heart of the Canyon just above Clavey Falls. Camping here and hiking up the Clavey to the swimming pools is often the highlight of a Tuolumne River trip.
Tuolumne Rafting News
- Ten Best Rafting Trips in the World (Sep 23, 2007) I'm sure these are up for debate, but I was asked to write this for an online magazine the other day and thought I'd post 'em.1. The Grand Canyon: this is the ultimate trip. Most trips are 14-18 days ...