Buck Meadows lies on Highway 120 and is considered a gateway to the Big Oak Flat Entrance of Yosemite National Park. Viewpoints, roads and hikes can be planned using their respective place names and route details. The differences in destination, loop-trail status and length are especially useful to note.

A Highway 120 Viewpoint and Road Route

Rim of the World is a viewpoint on Highway 120, three miles past the Groveland Ranger Station near Buck Meadows. Both the highway and the ranger station are named as landmarks for this viewpoint. For a different perspective on the road network, the scenic Burma Grade side road leads from the Merced River Canyon to Buck Meadows. The viewpoint and the side road are separate planning landmarks: one identifies a scenic spot, while the other describes a road route.

Hiking Trails with Different Destinations and Lengths

Two loop trails lead to different destinations at Hetch Hetchy Reservoir; one is the Wapama Falls Trail. The Wapama Falls Trail is five miles long and follows the shoreline. The Lookout Point Trail is two miles long and leads to a rocky viewpoint above Hetch Hetchy Valley. Comparing the trail lengths can help you choose a route; their destinations differ just as clearly as their distances.

For the similarly named Little Golden trails, it is worth checking the full name. The Little Golden Forest Trail is a half-mile interpretive loop that can be extended to two miles. Check local conditions before your visit. By contrast, the Little Golden Children’s Forest Trail is an easy, two-mile family hiking trail. It begins in front of the Groveland District Ranger Station in Stanislaus National Forest.

Other options each have their own route and destination details: the 1.4-mile, moderately difficult trail along the South Fork of the Tuolumne River leads into the Yosemite Wilderness Area to Carlon Falls. Seasonal conditions and restrictions may vary. The Merced River Trail takes hikers and cyclists to the North Fork of the Merced River and beyond. The trails described range from interpretive loops to routes with a named river or waterfall as their destination.

Water Scenery Along the South Fork

Rainbow Pool is on Highway 120: a 20-foot waterfall and swimming spot on the South Fork of the Tuolumne River. Seasonal conditions may vary; check local conditions before planning your visit. Its height, river location and roadside setting identify Rainbow Pool both as a natural attraction and a swimming spot. During the stagecoach era, a toll bridge over the South Fork of the Tuolumne River was also located at Rainbow Pool.

Traces of Buck Meadows History

The historic Big Gap Flume is on State Highway 120 just past Buck Meadows. Its replacement pipe still runs over Conrad Gulch; rivets, seams and closure pieces are still visible. If you would like to view the remains of the pipe, check access locally.

Buck Meadows itself also has a historic role in the region’s travel and working life. The settlement was a stagecoach stop for the first Yosemite tourists. In the 1920s and 1930s, it served as a base camp for workers building O’Shaughnessy Dam. From 1933 to 1941, it was also the site of Civilian Conservation Corps Camp F-82. These time periods show the settlement’s different functions without combining them into a single story.

Discover more destinations: North Wawona, Yosemite National Park, Mariposa, El Portal, Bootjack, Coulterville, Yosemite Valley, Wawona

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