The Top 25 Waterfalls in the United States

We are proud to present what we believe to be the very best 25 waterfalls in the United States! This list is based upon a mix of personal experience and a thorough review of dozens of internet sites and most of the waterfall guidebooks that have been published in the US over the last 25 years. Although we have visited only about half of these waterfalls personally, each of them are widely regarded as one of the most impressive waterfalls in America.

The list below is organized alphabetically by state. It is too hard for us to classify which ones are our very favorites because they are all so beautiful. Rest assured that every single one of these waterfalls is absolutely outstanding. We will tell you that the most extensive collections of remarkable waterfalls in the country can be found in (a) Yosemite National Park in California, (b) Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, and (c) the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon.

PICTURES WANTED!
We'd absolutely love to add your photographs to this page if we are missing one. Please send us an email with your pictures if you are willing to share. Your help is greatly appreciated!

Enjoy!

Waterfall Name	State	Park	Access	Notes
HAVASU FALLS (picture)	Arizona	Havasupai owned land	Backpacking Trip	one of the most beautiful waterfalls in the world; requires permits and either a (1) 10-mile hike each way or (2) a helicopter ride; many campsites near the falls (permits & reservations required); combined with Mooney Falls, these waterfalls offer one of the world's premier swimming hole destinations, if not the absolute best
MOONEY FALLS (picture)	Arizona	Havasupai owned land	Backpacking Trip	downstream from amazing Havasu Falls; requires permits and either a (1) 10-mile hike each way or (2) a helicopter ride; many campsites near the falls (permits & reservations required); combined with Havasu Falls, these waterfalls offer one of the world's premier swimming hole destinations, if not the absolute best
BRIDAL VEIL FALLS	California	Yosemite National Park	Roadside	one of Yosemite's tallest and best waterfalls; 620 feet tall; very popular attraction in Yosemite Valley; arrive early in the AM (before 8 or 9am) to get one of the extremely limited parking spots
FEATHER FALLS	California	Plumas National Forest	Hiking Trail	one of the tallest waterfalls in California; about 650 feet tall; consistently rated a "10" by guidebook authors and critics
MCWAY FALLS (picture)	California	Julia Pfiefer Burns State Park	Short Walk	not the most impressive of waterfalls since it is so slender and has weak flow, but it is located in one of the most gorgeous coastal settings in the world
NEVADA FALLS (picture)	California	Yosemite National Park	Hiking Trail	one of the most gorgeous waterfalls in the country; close to Vernal Falls; can be seen on a challenging hike trip to Half Dome by taking the Mist Trail from the Happy Isles trailhead
VERNAL FALLS (picture)	California	Yosemite National Park	Hiking Trail	one of the most gorgeous waterfalls in the country; close to Nevada Falls; can be seen on a challenging hike trip to Half Dome by taking the Mist Trail from the Happy Isles trailhead
YOSEMITE FALLS (picture)	California	Yosemite National Park	Roadside	probably the most famous waterfall in the USA; tallest waterfall in North America; a staggering 2,425 feet tall; best water flow isfrom May to June; anice national park lodge exists near the base of the falls
WAIMOKU FALLS	Hawaii	Haleakala National Park	Hiking Trail	Maui Island; 400-foot tall thin horsetail; fantastic photographs from the base of the falls
SHOSHONE FALLS	Idaho	Shoshone Falls Park	Roadside	212-foot tall, 1000-foot wide massive waterfall; one of the most powerful waterfalls in the country; other good waterfalls are nearby
ARETHUSA FALLS (picture)	New Hampshire	Crawford Notch State Park	Hiking Trail	the most dramatic waterfall in New England; 120-160ft tall (the actual height is quite contested); gorgeous horsetail accessed on moderate hiking trail
NIAGARA FALLS (picture)	New York	Niagara Falls State Park	Roadside	famous worldwide; includes all the falls there (i.e. American Falls, Horseshoe Falls, etc.); Canadian side of falls is actually more interesting with better views, however it is much, much more touristy
TAUGHANNOCK FALLS	New York	Tahughannock Falls State Park	Roadside	215ft drop in spectacular setting; one of the tallest single-drop falls in the Northeast
LATOURELL FALLS (picture)	Oregon	Guy W. Talbot State Park	Short Walk	stunning waterfall in high water; just down the street from Multnomah Falls; drops off overhanging basalt cliff; 249ft tall
MULTNOMAH FALLS (picture)	Oregon	Columbia Gorge Natural Scenic Area	Roadside/Hiking Trail	one of the best and most famous falls in North America; 620ft two-drop scenic falls separated by attractive bridge; one of dozens of outstanding waterfalls in the area
SOUTH FALLS	Oregon	Silver Falls State Park	Hiking Trail	one of ten waterfalls on one single day hike; several waterfalls can be walked behind; one of the best waterfall infused day-hikes in the entire country
FALL CREEK FALLS	Tennessee	Fall Creek Falls State Park	Short Walk/Hiking Trail	most famous waterfall in TN; 256-foot tall plunge with overhanging cliff in dramatic setting; about a million visitors each year; trail leads to base of falls
RUBY FALLS	Tennessee	privately owned	Hiking Trail	the best cave waterfall in the US; the 145ft drop is seen from within the cave itself; hundreds of thousands of visitors annually; entrance fee exists as property is privately owned; gift shop
CALF CREEK FALLS (picture)	Utah	Grand Staircase-Escalante NM	Hiking Trail	the best waterfall in Utah and perhaps the best desert-waterfall in the southwest after Havasu Falls and Mooney Falls in Arizona; incredible desert-oasis setting; 126ft horsetail/plunge with beautiful swimming hole below
THE CASCADES	Virginia	Jefferson National Forest	Hiking Trail	considered by many to be the best waterfall in Virginia; 66ft tall; fantastic swimming hole in low/moderate water conditions; plunge falls turns into fan
COMET FALLS	Washington	Mt. Rainier National Park	Hiking Trail	320 feet tall; several other waterfalls along the way; one of the most popular day hikes near Mt. Rainier
PALOUSE FALLS	Washington	Palouse Falls State Park	Short Walk	powerful and wild falls; nearly 200ft; a strong contender for best waterfall in Washington; extremely dramatic setting
SNOQUALMIE FALLS	Washington	unknown	Roadside	one of WA's most popular tourist attractions and easily its most popular waterfall; 270ft plunge with a lot of development near and above falls
LOWER FALLS (picture)	Wyoming	Yellowstone National Park	Roadside/Short Walk	one of the best waterfalls in the world; gorgeous wateraflls surrounded by yellow rocks; 308 feet tall; several overlook trails; near "Canyon Village"; in eastern Yellowstone; Yellowstone River
UPPER FALLS	Wyoming	Yellowstone National Park	Roadside/Short Walk	not as popular as the world-famous Lower Falls downstream, but a classic destination in its own right; near "Canyon Village" in eastern Yellowstone; ; Yellowstone River