Rainbow Falls
California · height not recorded · Last verified 2026-05-15
Right now
Overnight
36°F
Clear
Friday
72°F
Sunny
Snapshot built 4d ago. Sources: NWS HNX.
Rainbow Falls is a waterfall in Madera County, California. Height has not been officially recorded. Access details and conditions have not yet been verified in person by Fallspots — the data on this page comes from OpenStreetMap and USGS GNIS.
Rainbow Falls is the highest waterfall on the Middle Fork of the San Joaquin River, in the eastern Sierra Nevada mountains of California, in the United States. Plunging 101 feet (31 m) to the turbulent water below, the falls are named for the rainbows that appear in their mist on sunny summer days. Rainbow Falls is located within the boundaries of Devils Postpile National Monument.
Compare to nearby falls
If this one isn't the right fit, here's how it stacks up against the closest documented falls. Every column is filterable on the site — not buried in 13,000 reviews.
| Waterfall | Distance | Height | Trail | Dogs | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rainbow Falls (this page) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Lower Rainbow Falls | 1 mi | — | — | — | — |
| Minarets Falls | 3 mi | — | — | — | — |
| Minaret Falls | 3 mi | — | — | — | — |
| Twin Falls | 4 mi | — | — | — | — |
| Horsetail Falls | 11 mi | — | — | — | — |
Questions visitors ask about Rainbow Falls
Answers built from our structured data. If a question isn't here, the fact is unverified — we'd rather omit than guess.
How far is Rainbow Falls from a major city?
Rainbow Falls is 5 miles from Mammoth Lakes (about 8 minutes' drive).
More waterfalls in California
Where it is
37.6019, -119.0840
Sources and live status
Where we got the data, and where to check current conditions before you drive.
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow_Falls_(California)
Wikidata (Q37891)
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q37891
GeoNames (5385679)
https://www.geonames.org/5385679/
Last verified by Fallspots: 2026-05-15
Been there?
Marina and Theo verify pages one road trip at a time. If you've been to Rainbow Falls recently, your local knowledge improves the page for everyone. Pick the kind of contribution that fits — every email lands in our inbox and gets read (and credited when we publish).
Add a tip
Something we should know — best time, parking trick, that hidden viewpoint.
Share a photo
Have a CC-licensed image on Wikimedia or Flickr? Send the link.
Report a fix
Wrong height, closed trail, broken link — tell us what we got wrong.
We don't collect your email. Replies go directly to hello@fallspots.com.