Gavarnie, Grande Cascade de

Grande Cascade de Gavarnie or Gavarnie Falls is one of the tallest waterfalls in France and one of the major waterfalls of mainland Europe. The falls are found in the central Pyrénées Mountains in the large glacial Cirque de Gavarnie. During the peak of snowmelt, there are several other waterfalls in the cirque, some standing as tall as Gavarnie itself. Many sources of information on the waterfall have referred to the river as having been harnessed in a hydroelectric scheme. This occurs well below the waterfall itself and does not impact the consistency of the falls. The falls are fed by part of the headwaters of the Gave de Pau, which heads in karstic formations in the cirque. The stream which the falls occur along actually originates from tiny Lago Helago located just over the border in Spain. The lake is fed by snowmelt and a tiny remnant glacier has no surface outlet. Instead the water seeps into the porous ground and it emerges at the top of Gavarnie Falls to plummet almost 1400 feet to the basin floor.