Silver Strand Falls is a 620-foot horsetail waterfall on Meadow Brook at the western end of Yosemite Valley, California, dropping from the south rim between Old Inspiration Point and Stafford Point. It is the westernmost waterfall in the valley and, though it is in plain sight from Tunnel View, most visitors there never notice it.
The falls
Meadow Brook drains a small basin north of Badger Pass and falls in a single slender strand down the cliff. A December 2024 resurvey puts the drop at 620 feet; a figure of 1,170 feet repeated in many guides probably belongs to its neighbor, Widow's Tears. The creek runs only on snowmelt, for about five months of the year.
Getting there
The best view is from Tunnel View on Wawona Road: face the valley, then look back and to the right, below the rim. It is also visible from Inspiration Point, especially in May. There is no trail to the falls, and the unguarded clifftop spots reached off-trail from the Pohono Trail are dangerous.
Yosemite admission is $35 per vehicle for seven days, plus $100 per person for non-US residents aged 16 and older unless they hold an Annual or America the Beautiful Pass. No timed-entry reservation is required in 2026.
When to go
March through May is the season. In a dry year the falls can be gone by early June; after a big winter they may last until mid-July.
On site
The falls are seen only from a distance, from roadside viewpoints. Off-trail spots near the rim have sheer, unfenced drops.
History and name
The falls have also been called Inspiration Falls and Meadow Brook Falls, and were once known as Widow's Tears before that name moved to the next fall to the east. Silver Strand Falls was proposed in 1927.
Nearby
Widow's Tears is about 0.2 mile away, and Bridalveil Fall about 1.5 miles. Widow's Tears flows for only a few weeks each spring and is best seen from Northside Drive near Pohono Bridge.
Distances are straight-line.