Yosemite Falls, Waterfall at Yosemite National Park, California, US.

Yosemite Falls is a waterfall in Yosemite National Park in California that drops in three sections over a combined height of 2,425 feet (739 meters). The upper portion plunges down, followed by a middle cascade and a lower section that collects at the valley floor.

The main village of the Ahwahneechee, the native people of Yosemite Valley, stood at the base of the falls. They called the waterfall "Cholock" ("the fall") and held that the plunge pool below was inhabited by the spirits of witches, the Poloti. In one folktale a woman drawing water from the pool pulled up a pail of snakes, and that night the spirits sent a wind that sucked her house, with her and her newborn baby, into the pool.

The Ahwahneechee, whose main village stood at the base of the falls, called the waterfall "Cholock" ("the fall") and held that the plunge pool was home to the spirits of witches called the Poloti. In one folktale, a woman fetching water drew up a pail full of snakes, and that night the spirits pulled her house, with her and her newborn baby, into the pool.

The lower section is reachable via a short level trail, while climbing to the top requires a full day of demanding hiking with many steep switchbacks. Spring offers the strongest flow, while late summer may see the water reduce to a trickle or stop completely.

On cold winter days, the mist at the base of the upper section freezes into a cone-shaped ice tower that can reach up to 300 feet (90 meters) high. This ice cone grows as long as the spray freezes in the air and piles up layer by layer.