View source for Bridalveil Fall

{{For|other waterfalls named 'Bridal Veil'|Bridal Veil Falls (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox waterfall
| name = Bridalveil Fall
| photo = Bridelveil_Falls_Yosemite.jpg
| photo_caption = Bridalveil Fall as seen from [[Tunnel View]] on [[California State Route 41]].
| photo_width=250
| location = [[Yosemite Valley]], [[Yosemite National Park]], [[California]]
| coords = {{coord|37.716753|-119.646505|region:US-CA_type:waterbody|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| type = Plunge
| height = {{convert|188|m|ft}}
| number_drops = 1
| average_flow = 
| world_rank = 431
}}

'''Bridalveil Fall''' is one of the most prominent [[waterfall]]s in the [[Yosemite Valley]] in [[California]].<ref>The official name is singular, see {{Gnis|257449|Bridalveil Fall}}.</ref> 
The waterfall is {{convert|188|m|ft}} in height and flows year round.<ref>{{cite web  | title=Things to see  | work=Yosemite National Park  | url=http://www.nps.gov/yose/trip/inyose.htm  | access-date=2005-09-20  | url-status=dead  | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050831083532/http://www.nps.gov/yose/trip/inyose.htm  | archive-date=2005-08-31  }}</ref>

==Geology==
{{stack|[[File:Bridalveil Fall Base.jpg|thumb|center|Base of Bridalveil Fall.]]}}
The glaciers that carved Yosemite Valley left many [[hanging valley]]s that spawned the waterfalls that pour into the valley. Most of the waterways that fed these falls carved the hanging valleys into steep cascades, but Bridalveil Creek still leaps into the valley from the edge of the precipice, although that edge has moved back into an alcove from the original edge of the valley. While [[Yosemite Falls]] seem to also fall into this category, the original course took the [[Yosemite Creek]] down a gorge to the west of its current location.<ref>{{cite web | first=N. King |last=Huber, Ph.D. | title=The Geologic Story of Yosemite Valley  |work=USGS Western Region Geologic Information | 
url=http://www.yosemite.ca.us/library/geologic_story_of_yosemite/ | access-date=2008-09-16 |date=1987 }}</ref>

The primary source of Bridalveil Fall is [[Ostrander Lake]], some {{convert|16|km|mi|spell=us|lk=on}} to the south.<ref name="Hartesveldt1955">{{Cite journal|last=Hartesveldt|first=Richard J.|date=1955|title=Yosemite Valley Place Names|journal=Yosemite Nature Notes|url=https://www.yosemite.ca.us/library/yosemite_valley_place_names/|access-date=28 December 2024}}</ref>

In a brisk wind, the falling water is often blown sideways, and when the flow is light, it may not reach the ground directly below. Because of this, the Ahwahneechee [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] called this waterfall "''Pohono''", which means "Spirit of the Puffing Wind".<ref>{{cite book | last=Kroeber | first=A.L. | title=Indians of Yosemite | location=Berkeley | publisher=California Indian Library Collections [distributor]| year=1993 | oclc=58867540 | url=http://www.yosemite.ca.us/library/handbook_of_yosemite_national_park/indians.html| access-date=2008-09-16}}</ref> On August 5, 1856, newspaper editor Warren Baer suggested the name Bridalveil Fall, inspired by its delicate, lacy appearance in late summer.<ref name="Hartesveldt1955" />

==See also==
* [[Yosemite Firefall]]
* [[List of waterfalls]]
* [[List of waterfalls in California]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
*{{commons-inline}}
*{{GNIS|257449}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060813204145/http://thehive.modbee.com/?q=node%2F1743 Story of Bridalveil Fall, Pohono Indian legend.]

{{YosemiteWaterfalls}}
{{Yosemite National Park}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Geology of Yosemite National Park]]
[[Category:Waterfalls of Yosemite National Park]]
[[Category:Waterfalls of Mariposa County, California]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Mariposa County, California]]
[[Category:Plunge waterfalls]]