Rheinfall, Waterfall in Neuhausen am Rheinfall and Laufen-Uhwiesen, Switzerland
Rhine Falls is a waterfall between Canton Schaffhausen and Canton Zürich, measuring 150 meters across and dropping 23 meters. The water plunges over several rock ledges while a large boulder in the middle of the riverbed divides the current.
The waterfall formed during the last ice age roughly 14,000 to 17,000 years ago through erosion of resistant rock layers. Glaciers shaped the riverbed and created the present drop in the course of the Rhine.
The north bank has been a mill site for centuries; in the 17th century a blast furnace was built there to smelt iron ore found in the limestone, and it operated for about a century before being revived in the first half of the 19th century. Johann Georg Neher acquired rights to use the waterpower at the start of that century, and the rights stayed with his family for a long time.
Two railway stations serve the site: Neuhausen Rheinfall and Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall, both with large parking areas on either side of the river. Paths and viewing platforms sit at multiple levels, some requiring stairs or ramps to reach.
Water volume swings between roughly 250 cubic meters per second in winter and 600 cubic meters per second in summer, depending on snowmelt and rainfall. This shift makes the waterfall noticeably different across seasons.
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