Photographing Yosemite: Digital Field Guide

2.1. Why It's Worth a Photograph

Bridalveil Fall is one of the most prominent waterfalls in Yosemite National Park. You can see this fall easily from many vantage points along the roads and meadows at the western end of Yosemite Valley. Bridalveil Fall is the first waterfall you see when entering Yosemite Valley.

As it plunges 620 feet to the valley floor, the fall is blown fiercely by a "Pohono Wind," named after the Ahwahneechee Native American name for the fall, which means "Spirit of the Puffing Wind." Pohono was a vengeful spirit said to inhabit the waterfall. Because of this wind, the shape of the falls is constantly changing and making the fall appear wider. This blowing curtain of mist is said to resemble a bridal veil, thus the fall's name. Bridalveil Fall is the most known waterfall that runs year-round, although its flow does diminish in late summer and early fall.