Yosemite Falls

The waterfall drops in three major stages. The first stage is the Upper Fall, which plunges 1430ft. The second stage is the Middle Cascades, which tumbles down a height of reportedly 625ft. The final stage is the Lower Fall, which drops 320ft. You can see some or all of the falls from various locations (which we'll try to point out below) through the upper reaches of Yosemite Valley as well as the Valley itself.

In addition to seeing the falls from afar, you can also walk to its base from an easy walk near Yosemite Lodge (signpost V3). For a more strenuous excursion, you can take a pretty difficult hike (7.2 miles round-trip with over 2700 ft of elevation gain and nearly constant exposure to the sun) to its top, which offers mind-blowing birds eye views. That trail starts from the back of Camp 4 (signpost V5), also known as the Sunnyside Campground. It's also possible to get to the top of the falls from a variety of trails starting from Hwy 120 (when it's open in the Summer).

But enough of my talking about Yosemite Falls. See the photographs below and get a taste of the various ways you can experience Yosemite National Park's crown jewel.

[Back to top]

The Upper Fall from just beyond Columbia Point, which is around the 1.5-mile point of the Upper Yosemite Falls trail.

The Lower Fall from its base

The Upper and Lower Falls viewed from the trail to the base of the Lower Falls near the Yosemite Lodge

The waterfall reflected in the Merced River from Swinging Bridge - a picnic area and solidly built pedestrian bridge (despite its name) between the Four-Mile Trail and signpost V19 along the Southside Drive.

The view from the Southside Drive across the large meadow between the Four-Mile Trail and the Merced River Bridge cutting across Cook's Meadow (signpost V19)

Looking down from the top of the waterfall

All three tiers of the falls visible from Sentinel Dome. You can get to its trailhead (signpost G8) on the Glacier Point Road.

The Upper and Lower Falls from Cooks Meadow (just north of the bridge over the Merced River) in winter

The falls in the distance as seen from the precipitous Taft Point; it's trailhead is the same as that of Sentinel Dome (signpost G8 along Glacier Point Road).

The Upper Fall with a partial rainbow as seen near Curry Village near Stoneman Meadow