Each year, millions of visitors flock to Yosemite National Park to see the famous Yosemite Falls, one of the most iconic features of the park. In terms of waterfalls, Yosemite Falls is a force to be reckoned with. Totaling 2,425 feet in height, Yosemite Falls is the world's 6th tallest waterfall. This waterfall is actually composed of three different sections: Upper Falls, Cascades, and Lower Falls. Upper Falls contains the highest drop, where the water from the ledge above careens straight down 1,430 feet of granite rock face. At the base of Upper Falls, the water then tumbles and meanders down 675 feet through several short drops and boulder fields barely visible from the valley below. This section is known as the Cascades. Following the Cascades is the Lower Falls portion of Yosemite Falls, where the water then takes another sharp turn straight down, dropping another 320 vertical feet to the valley floor below, where it eventually feeds into the Merced River.
Yosemite Falls in Yosemite National Park(photo by Ryan B.)
Yosemite Falls is fed by Yosemite Creek, which meanders through 10 miles of forested high country behind Tioga Road before plunging in style over the 1,430 foot cliff. During the spring and summer, melting snow high in the mountains creates large amounts of runoff which causes Yosemite Creek to swell into a flood of icy water, then purging itself over the cliff at the mid-boggling rate of 2,400 gallons per second during its peak. The height of the runoff season is April through early July, and this is the best time of year to view Yosemite Falls as a roaring, thunderous rush of water. From August to mid-winter, the falls slow to barely a trickle and sometimes even dry up completely, depending on the amount of precipitation received the previous summer. During mid-winter and early spring, the water starts to flow again, and a huge ice cone creates itself at the base of the falls. This is due to sheets of water freezing into ice on the granite walls during the night and then melting and crashing to the base of the falls as the sun warms the granite in the morning. These thunderous crashes of ice from Yosemite Falls are spectacular and can be heard all throughout the valley floor on a sunny winter morning.
Yosemite Lodge at the Falls is by far the best choice of accommodation in Yosemite Valley for viewing Yosemite Falls. There are many rooms available at this location where you can actually see the falls by looking out the windows of your lodge room. Many other rooms do not provide a direct view of the falls from your room, but great views can be had quite easily by taking a few steps outside your room to peer up at the majestic falls. You can learn more by taking a look at our Yosemite lodging page.