Yosemite West is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

of resort homes located just outside the southern area of

Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is an American national park in California, surrounded on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The park is managed by the National Park Service and covers an ar ...

, just off Wawona Road, a continuation of

State Route 41 The following highways are numbered 41: International * AH41, Asian Highway 41 * European route E41 Australia * Olympic Highway * Mid-Western Highway Canada * Alberta Highway 41 * British Columbia Highway 41 * Manitoba Highway 41 * Newfoundlan ...

from Fresno. It is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

(CDP), with a population of 47 as of the 2020 census. It is situated south of the Chinquapin intersection of Wawona Road with Glacier Point Road, at an altitude of . The elevation reported by the

USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, a ...

is . The community is part of Henness Ridge, nearly above the southern banks of the

Merced River The Merced River (), in the central part of the U.S. state of California, is a -long tributary of the San Joaquin River flowing from the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada into the San Joaquin Valley. It is most well known for its swift and st ...

and State Route 140 from Mariposa. Addresses in this area are shown as "Yosemite National Park, CA 95389".

Logging: timber and growth of the Yosemite railroad

As early as 1912 the cutting of timber in the Chinquapin area was started and logs were hauled to Merced Falls. The

Yosemite Valley Railroad The Yosemite Valley Railroad (YVRR) was a short-line railroad operating from 1907 to 1945 in the state of California, mostly following the Merced River from Merced to Yosemite National Park, carrying a mixture of passenger and freight traffic. ...

was built to carry out the lumber harvested from the vast supply of

sugar pine ''Pinus lambertiana'' (commonly known as the sugar pine or sugar cone pine) is the tallest and most massive pine tree, and has the longest cones of any conifer. The species name ''lambertiana'' was given by the Scottish botanist David Douglas, ...

s found along the Merced River canyon. The Yosemite Lumber Company logged in this area. The incline rose to a height of above the Merced River. The Camp One incline was used to lower logs to the Merced River at El Portal from the logging area. One of the stops on the Yosemite Valley Railroad line was the lumber mill built by the

Yosemite Lumber Company The Yosemite Lumber Company was an early 20th century Sugar Pine and White Pine logging operation in the Sierra Nevada. The company built the steepest logging incline ever, a route that tied the high-country timber tracts in Yosemite Natio ...

where the wood was planed, finished, dried and stored. The lumber company is gone now and trees have fully returned with most on the hill growing to more than . The old Shay logging train grades have been replaced with paved roads.

Hiking trails starting at or near Yosemite West

Several trails begin at the border of Yosemite West, a private community. Some of them follow the old railroad beds left by the Yosemite Lumber Company. One such trail is across Highway 41 near the Henness Ridge Road turnoff to Yosemite West. Here there is a parking area and the trailhead for Deer Camp Trail. The trailhead is just south of Chinquapin and Glacier Point Road. The trail passes over Rail Creek and Strawberry Creek on its way to Deer Camp on Empire Meadow. Alder Creek Trail branches off from Deer Camp Trail. The trail leads to Alder Creek Fall and the remnants of the old Yosemite Lumber Company railroad, including old railroad ties and pieces of track. Some of the areas along the trail were at one time almost completely

clear-cut Clearcutting, clearfelling or clearcut logging is a forestry/ logging practice in which most or all trees in an area are uniformly cut down. Along with shelterwood and seed tree harvests, it is used by foresters to create certain types of fore ...

by the lumber company, but now the area has dense stands of conifers and a few oaks. The trail is moderate in difficulty, but the terrain is smooth. Another hiking experience is the Henness Ridge Fire Lookout Trail. This unmarked trailhead starts at the end of Azalea Lane in Yosemite West. Using the asphalt access road to the right, hike past the water towers and continue 0.7 miles to the Henness Ridge fire lookout tower. Built in 1939 by CCC, it was used by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

for fire detection and is now listed as historic structure number 5300. Another branch of the trail starting at Azalea Road. Take the path to the left and proceed a quarter mile northeast distance, where the trail turns south. You are now on the Eleven-mile Trail also known as the Old Wawona Road, which parallels the current Wawona Road. Follow this old road bed south. The trail branches at the Eleven-mile Creek. The trail which parallels the creek bed and leads to Eleven-mile Meadow. Eleven-mile Meadow has had many different uses through the years. The meadow had been used for cattle grazing operations until the early 1930s, as a

logging camp A logging camp (or lumber camp) is a transitory work site used in the logging industry. Before the second half of the 20th century, these camps were the primary place where lumberjacks would live and work to fell trees in a particular area. Many ...

and as a CCC camp which was established in 1933. Earlier on, Stage coaches brought travelers to the area with a stop at the Eleven Mile Change Station which was near Chinquapin.http://www.yosemite.ca.us/library/yosemite_resources/recent_years.html Yosemite: the Park and its Resources (1987) by Linda W. Greene In the late 1800s the roadbed was converted to a rail bed. The Yosemite Lumber Company used it transport logs to the incline at Henness Ridge. The incline lowered logs to the Merced River far below.

References

External links

*
Yosemite West Property & Homeowners, Inc
*
Yosemite Institute new facility project
*
Badger Pass Skiing
{{authority control Census-designated places in California Census-designated places in Mariposa County, California Unincorporated communities in California Unincorporated communities in Mariposa County, California Populated places in the Sierra Nevada (United States) Yosemite National Park Populated places established in 1967 1967 establishments in California Rural tourism

Logging: timber and growth of the Yosemite railroad

Hiking trails starting at or near Yosemite West

See also

References

External links