The Bridalveil Falls Bridges are three structures located in Yosemite Valley beneath the namesake Bridalveil Fall. These structures were designed/constructed as part of the Bridalveil Fall Road by Oscar Parlier in 1913 as the first reinforced concrete bridges in Yosemite National Park. The Bridalveil Fall Road was a short spur of the Wawona Road which was first proposed by the Washburn Brothers in 1881 and served wheeled traffic until sometime after the Wawona Tunnel opened in 1933. The Bridalveil Fall Bridges are now as part of a trail are the only known spans still standing from the era of United States Calvary oversite of Yosemite National Park.
The Bridalveil Fall Road can be seen branching south of the Wawona Road on the 1930 Yosemite National Park & Curry Company map.
Part 1; the history of the Bridalveil Fall Bridges
Bridalveil Fall is one of the most prominent features of Yosemite Valley. This Plunge type waterfall is fed by Bridalveil Creek all year and is 617 feet high. This fall is easily observed from the Wawona Tunnel View and is one of the most commonly seen attractions in Yosemite National Park.
A roadway at the base of Bridalveil Fall was known to exist as early as 1883. It is unclear when this spur road was created due to a lack of records and overtly detailed early maps of Yosemite Valley. It is known that the Washburn Brothers of the Yosemite Stage & Turnpike Company sought permission from the Mariposa County Board of Supervisors to construct a road at Bridalveil Fall in 1881. It is unclear if the Washburn Brothers sought to expand an existing road or commission an entirely new one.
The Bridalveil Fall Road can be seen branching from the Wawona Road (shown as Madera Road) on the 1883 Wheeler Topographical map of Yosemite Valley and vicinity.
The Bridalveil Fall Bridges are the first three reinforced road bridges built in Yosemite National Park. The structures were constructed in 1913 and were designed by Oscar Parlier. The Bridalveil Fall Road can be seen on a snip of the 1930 Yosemite National Park & Curry Company map.
The Bridalveil Fall Bridges the only known surviving bridges from era of U.S. Cavalry Administration in Yosemite National Park. The Cavalry would administer the park from 1890 through 1914. An analysis of the structures can be seen below in a 1991 era Historic American Engineering Record document.
It isn't fully clear when the Bridalveil Fall Bridges were closed to automobile traffic, but it was likely shortly after the opening of the Wawona Tunnel in 1933. The Bridalveil Fall Road appears converted to an entrance driveway on the 1948 California State Automobile Association map of Yosemite National Park.
Part 2; a visit to the Bridalveil Fall Bridges
The Bridalveil Fall Bridges are now part of the Bridalveil Fall Trail. Said trail connects from the Bridalveil Fall Parking Lot to the larger Valley Loop Trail. The width of these bridges is really the only real indication that they once carried wheeled traffic.
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