Autumn Paddling Adventures in NH

There are so many great places to paddle in NH that its tough to figure out where to begin. Here are a few recommendations for your autumn adventures

Catch the morning mist on the Connecticut Lakes

Anytime is a great time to paddle on the lakes of the Great North Woods but early mornings in the fall offer a very special adventure for lots of reasons. First, the -lakes are still relatively warm and in conjunction with the cooler weather are blanketed in mist almost every morning. It makes for great photographs and some of the most beautiful paddling you have ever experienced. It’s also the time at which the local wildlife are most active, don’t be surprised to see a moose shoulder deep in the water taking its breakfast among the pickerel weed.

Whitewater in Errol
The finest and most easily accessed set of rapids in New Hampshire can be found on the Androscoggin River in Errol NH at the junction of Routes 16 and 28 just to the east of town. There is an easy “Put-in”only about 1/2 mile north on Rte 16 and a takeout at the base of the rapids that requires you to carry your boat a few hundred yards to a parking area.


Rafting, Canoeing and Kayaking on the Pemigewasset River – Bristol
A very nice stretch of Whitewater can be found just below the Bristol Dam on the Pemigewasset River. Water flow is determined by the release schedule of the dam so before you go you’ll want to check the Merrimack Valley Paddler’s Website (www.mvpclub.org).The stretch ends at a good sized hydraulic (also called a “hole” where a large standing wave piles back on itself). It is here that many a paddler has been known to stop and play a while. The Merrimack Valley Paddlers club is a very friendly bunch and can often be found playing in this -stretch of the river. They also maintain a fleet of rental boats, including two 5-person rafts, “rubber duckies” and “hard” boats for folks who want to try the sport but don’t have the equipment. Once you are hooked (and you will be. . .) the club also assists new paddlers in learning the skills needed to both paddle safely and have fun. This includes correct selection of a boat, safety equipment, paddle, and other gear as well as the basic skills needed for your first whitewater experience, including how to get in and out of a kayak easily, how to do a “wet exit” (getting out of the boat while it is upside down), and learning to roll. Membership dues are a mere $15 per year for individuals, and $20 per year for families. If you live anywhere in the region and paddle regularly joining is a great idea. You can find details on their website.


Kayaking on the Merrymeeting River
Answering the Call
By Barbara Bald

Water comprises nearly three-fourths of our planet’s surface, sustains all life and for centuries has been calling people to its banks. Ancient civilizations have been built around it, transportation required it, and books continue to extoll its healing powers.
Within our own state, early settlements depended on the Gundalow (a flat-bottomed boat) to carry goods between towns such as Durham and Exeter. Our state’s small coastline has invited tourists to Hampton Beach for years. Waterfalls, such as Glen Ellis Falls, have called as sirens to visitors and residents alike. Rivers, such as the Androscoggin, still lure fly-fishermen, kayakers and gold-panners to their shores. Just what is our attraction to water?

For Vicki Howard, owner of River Run Deli in Alton, kayaking the Merrymeeting River is a chance for folks to relax and socialize. Four years ago Vicki purchased enough Old Town kayaks, life vests and paddles to accommodate multiple paddlers. She decided to orchestrate weekly trips up-river and provide scrumptious meals from her Deli.

On this particular evening’s paddle, 22 women aged 25- 65 gathered at the Deli at 6p.m. Friends met friends, strangers extended hands to newcomers and social banter filled the air. Some were veteran kayakers; some anticipated something new. Since Vicki assisted with boats both in and out of the water, experience was not an issue.

The 45-minute paddle was a lazy one up the meandering river. Facing west, early evening sun necessitated shades or visors. White pines peered back from glassy reflections on still water, painted turtles basked on logs and Kingbirds swooped at insects. Raspy Redwings and trilling tree frogs provided the chorus.

For some, the trip’s highlight was getting under the Route 140 “bridge”, where waters, high from recent rains, required scrunching down into the little boats and, with fingertips under bridge concrete, inching one’s way to the other side! Others, choosing an easier route, simply portaged across.

Reaching the dam, Vicki unveiled her elaborate entrees. Sitting picnic-style on three large blankets, we tasted Oriental Noodle Salad, various wraps, three-bean salad, potato-salad, chips and spicy Boar’s Head pickles. Drinks included BYOB beverages, sodas, bottled water or Frappaccino milks. Desserts were chocolate pudding, strawberry shortcake or lemon merique squares.

After with a visit from some Canada geese and helping with easy cleanup, we all headed back. Cool night air offered refreshing, bug-free breezes and chances to watch the antics of two young beaver. Rounding the bend at 8:30p.m. Tikki torches at the Deli dock greeted us, topping off this near-perfect adventure. The lure of New Hampshire waters had provided rest and relaxation, a chance to see wildlife up-close and an opportunity to share an outing with others.

Whether you’re looking to sample a lazy fall venture or prefer the rush of white-water in springtime, New Hampshire waters call to us as they did to our ancestors. They beckon us to rejuvenate ourselves in ways that only water seems able to do.

Footnote: Vicki Howard encourages visitors to put her boats in the Merrymeeting River from May 1 through fall foliage season. Weekly Pic-A-Noe adventures described above run from mid-June through August. Vicki can be reached at 875-1000.



Ice Fishing on Newfound Lake NH
Framed Prints, Posters, Cards

Baker River Claybath

The Baker River offers some of the most scenic views within New Hampshire. All along this ancient, meandering river are deposits of clay that present the opportunity for you to save on the cost of that expensive spa treatment you've been dreaming about or just have some plain ol' dirty fun.

More about the Baker River

The Northern Forest Canoe Trail

Written by Robert Dixon


A 740-Mile Historic Water Trail Traversing Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York and Quebec

Thousands of years before the arrival of Columbus, Native Americans had a well-established network of travel routes in the northeast. Many of these routes were land trails, but where possible water transport was preferred. With the possible exception of the Boundary Waters Canoe Wilderness in Minnesota and Canada, few areas of the continent lent themselves more to this mode of transportation than the region now known as the “Northern Forest”. Here, glaciers working in concert with other natural forces created a landscape laced with waterways.

Europeans quickly began to adopt the methods for water travel invented by the First Peoples. Beginning with French Voyageurs and followed by others the birch bark canoe became a common mode of transportation for the newcomers within the region. With the help of native guides the reach of these European was soon spreading through Canada and working toward the great rivers of the west.


Time, technology and conflict have changed the landscape since those days. Artificial political boundaries, roads, dams and other impediments have hindered passages and hidden portages of old, but the canoe has never been completely erased from this landscape. Now a hardworking and determined group of citizens, businesses and organizations is working to make sure it never is.
In 1976 Mike Krepner, Ron Canter, and Randy Mardres three men interested in tracing Native American routes started a nonprofit corporation called “Native Trails” and began researching and retracing the old routes. What these three intrepid “second generation pioneers” found was the shadow of a viable water route connecting the Adirondacks and northern Maine. In the ensuing years, they paddled, poled and portaged what was to become the Northern Forest Canoe Trail (NFCT).

In 2000, the first through-paddle of the 740 mile water trail, traversing thirty five communities was completed by Donnie Mullen. This milestone was aptly completed in the same year that a quarter century of effort achieved critical mass with the formation of The Northern Forest Canoe Trail, Inc. NFCT is a nonprofit organization created to complete and manage the Trail and, in so doing, to celebrate the rich human heritage and diverse natural environment of the Northern Forest.



Officially completed in 2006 the Trail represents a model of collaboration among nonprofit groups, corporations, landowners and more than 150 volunteers committed to stewardship of the resource. The environmental and economic benefits are easy to see and the NFCT has adopted a set of guiding principles assuring that the Trail serves as both an economic asset to the communities and a living reminder of the history and heritage of the Northern Forest area and its people.

Today there are Thirteen mapped contiguous sections offering campsites, portage routes, trail signs, and access points along the entire route. Local community groups have played a crucial role in the Trail's development in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Québec and New York, and will continue to be stewards of the Trail in the future.

Image Courtesy Jim Henry

The NFCT is not a wilderness trail. There are many wild areas of great beauty on the route, but much of the trail passes through developed areas. According to Kate Williams, Director of the NFCT, the nature of the landscape of the NFCT route reflects its history. “Were it not for the towns, mills, working forests and farms along the way the trail could not exist.”

A traverse of the NFCT is not just a long distance challenge, it is a journey through the course of history in the Northern Forest. What you see along it is indicative of what happened; history unfolds before you.
Paddling the entire NFCT takes about eight weeks and will test the skills of even the most advanced paddler: flatwater, whitewater, portaging, poling, both upriver and down, the traveler will need to handle it all. But, like its landed cousin “the Appalachian Trail” the Northern Forest Canoe Trail offers those who wish to sample it numerous opportunities for shorter trips that take in only sections of this 740 mile goliath. The full trip requires that paddlers travel from west to east but shorter trips allow paddlers to choose their direction based on their goals and experience level.

The Northern Forest Canoe Trail is a membership organization. To join or to learn more, please contact them at: Northern Forest Canoe Trail, PO Box 565 Waitsfield, VT 05673, 802-496-2285
info@northernforestcanoetrail.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

or visit their website at
www.northernforestcanoetrail.org