Yosemite waterfalls: highest levels in YEARS!
Bridalveil Fall and Rainbow, April 2010
Record snowfall in the Sierra Nevada this year (it’s STILL snowing!) means record snowmelt with the higher temperatures of spring. The waterfalls, streams, and rivers of Yosemite National Park have swelled to their highest flows in years!
THIS year, Yosemite Falls (America’s tallest [multi-drop; 2,425 feet] waterfall; nearby Ribbon Fall is the tallest single-drop waterfall [1,612 feet; 491 m] on the North American Continent) pours enough water to fill a tanker truck ever 2 seconds. The mist from Bridalveil Fall fills the meadow below!
The peak melt is expected in MID-JUNE this year! All of the water in peak years like this one causes the formation of countless smaller waterfalls.
All of this frigid water brings dangers, as well! The 40-degree F (4.4-degree C) Merced River is flowing at 1,600 cubic feet per second and could sweep away people or objects at 10 miles/hour, which is faster than than someone could run along the shore. Two people died earlier in May: one slipped and fell below Yosemite Falls where mist makes granite very slick, another fell into the Merced River, which carried him swiftly about 150 yards and lodged his body under a rock.
So remember the danger of cold water and the force of running water, but try to see Yosemite Valley this spring if you can! I did not make my customary trip there in April, but I look forward to visiting soon!
-Bill at
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