The Waterfalls at Ribbon Falls

This waterfall is located in Yosemite National Park in California, home of the giant Sequoias, bears, and interesting geological formations. Yosemite National Park may be most famous for Old Faithful and the reputed largest waterfall in the United States, Yosemite Falls, but there are plenty of other inspiring waterfalls in the park. Of these Ribbon Falls is most definitely one. Ribbon Falls is thought to be the largest single-drop waterfall in the United States. This is different from Yosemite and other tall waterfalls in other categories. A single-drop waterfall falls to the ground without encountering the cliff face or outcroppings of rock which may impede its course for a short way. This waterfall shares its name with another waterfall in South Island, New Zealand. No relation.

This tall plunge waterfall comes in at 1612 feet and yet it remains a thin wispy ribbon of water as it slips down the cliff side coming in at only 30 feet wide. One might call this waterfall ephemeral as it is fed by a tiny creek by the same name, Ribbon Creek and comes and goes with the seasons in the park. Ribbon Falls is born with the melting of the winter snow each spring as it comes down from the mountains. The falls reaches its peak in very early spring and disappears as the last of the snow melts in the springtime. Due to the short life span of this waterfall each year there are not good trails or roadways to reach the base of the waterfalls.

It can also only be seen from head on. Ribbon falls has managed to become ensconced in a small niche in the cliff side so that visitors to the park must stand on a lookout on the south side road that is just opposite Bridalveil Falls. Ribbon falls plunges from the cliffs west of the El Capitan.

The cliff face is a grayish tan color surrounding the falls. It and the rest of the valley was carved and shaped by the efforts of a moving glacier. Conifer trees are often seen dotting the sky at the top of the cliff face, even from the distance that most observers view the falls. The falls can be seen hugging the right side of it narrow niche, although the falls are much narrower than the carved out rock. To the left of the niche there is a slightly lower jutting cliff face with a gentle slope at the top presenting a few more conifers and green vegetation before it recedes into the cliff wall. At the base of the falls is a generous carpet of dark green conifers spreading out on its way to the valley floor.

Ribbon Falls ends a good 1500 feet above the floor of Yosemite Valley. It all ready being so tall has its start in the highest part of the cliff in that area 3000 feet about the valley floor. This isn’t quite a mile high but it certainly adds to the ephemeral nature of this waterfall in the sky.