Rainfall infiltration has a substantial impact on slope stability, construction activities, and overall safety. To investigate this effect, ponded infiltration tests were carried out using soil columns, and the soil hydraulic parameters were obtained through inverse modeling with HYDRUS-1D. These parameters were then used to simulate infiltration under different ponding depths. The results show that the advancement of the wetting front exhibits a nonlinear pattern, which can be divided into an early infiltration stage dominated by the ponding intensity and a later stage controlled by the soil’s hydraulic properties. The cumulative infiltration follows the power-law form of the Philip model, with a coefficient of determination R2 of 0.9713, and the infiltration process can be separated into three stages based on infiltration rate: rapid initial infiltration, decelerating infiltration, and a steady stage. Among the three soil-water retention models fitted using the measured data, the Gardner model provides the best performance , with a coefficient of determination R2 of 0.984 7. It can be observed from the simulation results of HYDRUS-1D that, with the increase in ponding depth,, the time required for the wetting front to reach the same depth becomes shorter, and the infiltration rate rises noticeably. However, during the steady stage, the infiltration rates under different ponding depths converge, and the final cumulative infiltration differs only slightly. These findings provide a useful reference for slope stability assessment and subsequent engineering work in the study area. [Keywords] infiltration characteristics; soil column test; numerical simulation; HYDRUS-1D