Takakkaw Falls, Waterfall in Yoho National Park, Canada.
Takakkaw Falls is a waterfall in Yoho National Park near Field, British Columbia, fed by meltwater from the Daly Glacier in the Waputik Icefield. Its main drop falls 254 metres, and a 1985 survey measured this section; total height estimates range from 302 to 373 metres. The water leaves the top as a narrow stream, widens into a white misty column down dark grey and brown rock, then splits into a thin winding stream that splashes onto uneven ground below.
The name Takakkaw was proposed by Sir William Cornelius Van Horne, head of the Canadian Pacific Railway, and officially adopted in 1904. The word is Cree for "it is magnificent", though the Cree did not historically inhabit this area and did not name the falls. The falls lie in Yoho National Park near Field, British Columbia.
Takakkaw means "it is magnificent" in Cree, but the name was not given by Indigenous peoples: the Cree did not historically inhabit this area. Sir William Cornelius Van Horne, head of the Canadian Pacific Railway, suggested it, and it was officially adopted in 1904. The falls appear in the 1995 film Last of the Dogmen.
The trail is open from May through October and starts from a parking area near the base. Water flow is strongest in late spring and early summer when mountain snow melts rapidly.
Water feeds into the falls from a large glacial field high in the mountains above, ensuring continuous flow through summer. This means the waterfall remains powerful even during dry periods.
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