Franconia Notch State Park

New Hampshire State Park, Bought In 1928 And Dedicated As A Memorial To The State'S Men And Women Who Served In War; Lies Within The Proclamation Boundary Of The White Mountain National Forest And Holds The Flume Gorge, The Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway And The Old Man Of The Mountain Profile Plaza. · Lincoln, New Hampshire

A narrow mountain pass between the Kinsman and Franconia ranges, and the most visited corner of the White Mountains. The state bought the notch in 1928 to save its forests from logging, and made it a memorial to New Hampshire's war dead; Interstate 93 still squeezes through it as a two-lane parkway rather than a full motorway. Inside its roughly 6,700 acres are the Flume Gorge, an 800-foot chasm walked on boardwalks between granite walls 70 to 90 feet high; the Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway, descendant of the first passenger aerial tramway in North America, which lifts you 2,000 feet to a 4,080-foot summit in about eight minutes; the Basin, a glacial pothole Thoreau admired; Echo Lake's beach under Cannon Cliff; and the site of the Old Man of the Mountain, the granite profile on the state's quarter that fell in 2003. Above it all, the Franconia Ridge loop over Mount Lafayette is one of the finest and busiest day hikes in the eastern United States.

852 Daniel Webster Highway (Flume Gorge Visitor Center), Lincoln, New Hampshire, 03251, United States

The park, its roadside stops, the recreation path and the trails are open all year, but the paid attractions are seasonal. The Flume Gorge typically opens in early or mid-May and closes in late October, walking entry on timed tickets during the day, with the last entry well before closing. The Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway runs for sightseers from about late May to mid-October, and for skiers in winter; it stops in high wind. The Echo Lake beach has lifeguards and boat rentals only in summer. Lafayette Place Campground runs from about mid-May to mid-October. The Basin, the Old Man of the Mountain Profile Plaza and Profile Lake have no fees or gates, and the ski area runs roughly December to April. Verify each date for your year.

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