Nugget Falls

Nugget Falls is a powerful veiling waterfall which can be seen pouring into the east side of Mendenhall Lake near the toe of the Mendenhall Glacier just outside of Juneau. The falls drop about 375 feet in one long, booming horsetail type fall which veils outward slightly towards its base. The falls can be viewed up close from a huge sand bar adjacent to where the creek empties into the lake, or at a distance from the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center, though only about half of the falls can be seen from either vantage due to the shape of the gorge upstream. We should note that topographic maps mark a second waterfall a short distance upstream from the top of Nugget Falls, however there is no waterfall at the indicated location and is instead a small dam which may be an indication that Nugget Creek has been partially diverted into a hydroelectric system.