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East Snow Mountain Falls

East Snow Mountain Falls, seen from above at true elevation

East Snow Mountain Falls is a waterfall in California, at a modelled elevation of 1,926 m. Castle Peak stands 2,773 m to the north-northeast, 10 miles off. The nearest named place is Snow Mountain, a peak 0.9 miles away. Lake Tahoe - Eastshore Drive passes 24 miles off.

The story

East Snow Mountain Falls is a seasonal waterfall in the Sierra Nevada in Placer County, California. At 2,200 feet (670 m), it is the second tallest measured waterfall in California after Yosemite Falls. The falls are a long cascade consisting of dozens of smaller drops. Due to the small size of its drainage basin, the falls usually flow only from December through to July. The falls occur on an unnamed stream on the eastern face of Snow Mountain, which drains into the Royal Gorge of the North Fork American River. They are accessed by a strenuous 7-mile (11 km), one-way hike from Cascade Lakes, near Soda Springs.

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Wikidata Q5329404, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.

What the record says

Height
670 m

How to reach it

Coordinates39.24167, -120.44725

Overlooks nearby

Named places within 25 miles

Peaks
  • Snow Mountain: 0.9 mi
  • Devils Peak: 2.8 mi
  • Point Mariah: 3.2 mi
  • Cherry Point: 3.7 mi
  • Palisade Peak: 4.7 mi
Parks: 46
  • Dog Beach: 5.1 mi
  • Lamson-Cashion Donner Summit Hub: 8.3 mi
  • Firepit: 8.7 mi
  • Donner Lake Property Owners Association Private Beach: 10.0 mi
  • Donner Pines West Beach: 10.2 mi
Cliffs: 27
  • Chalk Bluff: 7.2 mi
  • German Ridge: 7.5 mi
  • Goldilocks Wall: 8.4 mi
  • Petroglyph Cliff: 8.5 mi
  • Tunnel Rock: 8.6 mi
Nature reserves: 25
Historic sites: 24
  • Forest Gift Shop: 6.9 mi
  • CPRR Lookout: 8.2 mi
  • Johnson Monument: 9.2 mi
  • Watson Monument: 9.8 mi
  • Schallenberger Cabin Site: 12.9 mi
Museums: 13
Picnic sites: 10
  • French Meadows Day Use Site: 8.1 mi
  • Lodgepole: 9.1 mi
  • Day Use Area: 9.3 mi
  • Fuller Lake Day Use Site: 13.4 mi
  • Donner Camp Picnic Site: 17.0 mi
Springs: 9
  • Health Springs: 2.2 mi
  • Coyote Spring: 7.3 mi
  • Dawson Spring: 8.6 mi
  • Government Spring: 10.4 mi
  • Big Spring: 11.5 mi
Beaches: 8
Rest areas: 5
Attractions: 4
  • China Wall: 8.5 mi
  • Rodeo Grounds: 15.9 mi
  • Webber Lake: 17.1 mi
  • Missouri Bar: 24.4 mi
Waterfalls: 4
  • Weber Falls: 17.0 mi
  • Hackmans Falls: 23.9 mi
  • Loves Falls: 24.9 mi
  • Bassi Falls: 24.9 mi
Artworks: 3
Ghost towns: 2
Gardens: 1
  • Dutch Flat Community Garden: 21.1 mi
Hot springs: 1
  • Campbell Hot Springs: 23.6 mi

Summits around it

The highest named summits within 12.6 miles of East Snow Mountain Falls. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.

SummitBearingElevationDistance
Castle PeakNNE2,773 m10.0 mi
Granite ChiefESE2,749 m9.1 mi
Basin PeakNNE2,749 m10.7 mi
Lyon PeakESE2,713 m7.5 mi
Tinker KnobE2,713 m8.7 mi
Needle PeakESE2,711 m8.3 mi
Washeshu PeakESE2,706 m10.4 mi
Anderson PeakE2,646 m8.1 mi

When to go

Light through the year

DateSunriseGolden hourSunset
March equinox07:0618:3919:14
June solstice05:3619:5220:32
September equinox06:5018:2519:00
December solstice07:1916:0016:43

Local time (America/Los_Angeles).

Climate normals

Months averaging 50–80 °F: May–Oct.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg °F353639435159656460514034

1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Lake Spaulding, 12 mi away.

Months at or above the year’s average flow: Dec–Jun — fullest in May, leanest in Sep.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Mean cfs26.727.623.026.936.818.04.61.31.02.98.423.0

USGS monthly mean discharge at gauge Duncan Cyn C BL Div Dam NR French Meadows CA, 8 mi away — the nearest gauge, which can sit on a different stream.

Where this comes from

Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.

OpenStreetMapWikipediaWikidata

OpenStreetMap element node/3044509821

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