I was curious about where the name Hetch Hetchy came from and I found this site that has the answer and info on other names in the Sierras.
Place Names of the High Sierra (1926) by Francis P. Farquhar
http://www.yosemite.ca.us/library/place_names_of_the_high_sierra/h.html “An explanation of the meaning of the word Hetch Hetchy has been obtained through the kindness of John Muir, who says: ‘I have been informed by mountaineers who know something of the Indian language that Hetch Hetchy is the name of a species of grass that the Tuolumne Indians used for food, and which grows on the meadow at the lower end of the valley. The grain, when ripe, was gathered and beaten out and pounded into meal in mortars.’ The word was originally spelled Hatchatchie.”
Sorry to go a little more off topic on a thread that was billed as a bit off topic but here's another one from Farquhar's list that caught my interest.
"OWENS LAKE, RIVER, VALLEY
Richard Owens joined Fremont’s third expedition in August, 1845, With Kit Carson. “That Owens was a good man it is enough to say that he and Carson were friends. Cool, brave, and of good judgment; a good hunter and good shot; experienced in mountain life; he was an acquisition, and proved valuable throughout the campaign.” (Fremont: Memoirs, 1887, p. 427.)"
