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Widows Tears

The elusive Widow's Tears seen near the Pohono Bridge



Widows Tears suffers from a case of mistaken identity with the neighboring
Silver Strand Falls.

Many observers (including myself) knew that Silver Strand Falls couldn't be the often-quoted 1170ft unless they counted the watercourse that you couldn't see below Hwy 41. In older Yosemite literature, Silver Strand Falls was also called Widow's Tears (probably by the same guy who once named Ribbon Falls "Virgin's Tears"). After sifting through the fog of misinformation, I tend to think it's Widow's Tears that's 1170ft.

Even with all that said about its gaudy height numbers, this is really an ephemeral waterfall with a real short season. To see it, you have to time your visit and know where to look. And given its paltry flow, it's even harder to photograph. However, in the Winter, I have seen trip reports of people ice climbing, and we must say that the ice that accumulates makes this falls look wider than it really is.

I once overheard a tour operator tell a story about a widow who couldn't stop crying after losing her husband. It wasn't until after she saw this waterfall that she stopped crying - hence the waterfall's name. I'm not sure if this is true, but it is quite a story.

Directions: To get a view of this elusive ephemeral waterfall, look for an unsigned pullout on the Route 140 just west of the Pohono Bridge. It's east of the Route 120/140 junction so you went too far if you made it there.

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Widow's Tears seen along with Silver Strand FallsWidow's Tears seen along with Silver Strand Falls

More recent shot of the photo aboveMore recent (June 2011) shot of the photo above

Widow's Tears seen from the Valley View LookoutWidow's Tears seen from the Valley View Lookout

More recent photo of the fallsMore recent (June 2011) photo of the falls

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Bottom up sweep of both falls from the Merced River Canyon


Bottom up sweep of just Widow's Tears while it was raining


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TRIP REPORTS
For more information about our experiences with this waterfall, check out the following travel stories.

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