Pemigewasset, New Hampshire, US |
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| Usual Difficulty | V (for normal flows) |
|---|---|
| Length | 2.9 Miles |
| Avg. Gradient | 200 fpm |
| Name | Range | Difficulty | Updated | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PEMIGEWASSET RIVER AT WOODSTOCK, NH | ||||
| usgs-01075000 | 4.50 - 9.00 ft | V | 00h33m | 2.64 ft (rc= -0.4 ) |
Source: Greg and Sue Hanlon's Steep Creeks of New England, which has more info on this run. Text used with permission.
Directions: Park in The Basin parking area, from I-93 South in Franconia Notch State Park;
put in on the North side of the lot.
To takeout: take I-93 South to Exit 1. Follow Rte. 3 South toward Lincoln. The takeout is behind
the Indian Head Hotel / Resort on the left. They'll usually allow you to park in the hotel
parking lot, but be courteous; we don't want to lose this privilege.
To retrieve a car from the putin, you'll need to drive North on I-93 to Exit 2 (Cannon Mtn.
Tramway Exit). Bang an Interstate U-Turn and head South back to The Basin Exit.
The first known descent of the Upper Pemi was April 26, 1992, by Bob Potter, Gary Weiner, Greg Hanlon, and Steve Hyndman. The first run of the North Pole occurred several years later.
| Name | Range | Difficulty | Updated | Level | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PEMIGEWASSET RIVER AT WOODSTOCK, NH | ||||||||||||
| usgs-01075000 | 4.50 - 9.00 ft | V | 00h33m | 2.64 ft (rc= -0.4 ) | ||||||||
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| Mile | Rapid Name | Class | Features (Legend) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.0 | Map of the Upper Pemi region |   | |
| 0.1 | The Basin | 5.1 |  |
| 0.2 | Baby Flume | IV+ | |
| 0.3 | The North Pole | 5.1 |   |
| 0.3 | Wham Bam, Thank You Ma'am | 5.1 | |
| 0.4 | CL:4-5 Boulder Gardens | V | |
| 0.5 | CL: 3-4 Boulder Gardens | IV | |
Upper Pemi region
BasinFalls into a beautiful Dark Basin which is actually a large pot hole.
Boater: Wayne Gman
Baby FlumeNarrow Slide though a stronger hole. Get ready to be thrown for a hard brace.
Boater: Dan Mayer
Once you pass under the Rt 93 bridge quickly be on the look out for a significant horizon line within a gap in the boulders signalling the need to get out of the river to scout and more likely portage (on right). The North Pole is frequently portaged due to significant sieve action.
Wham Bam, Thank You Ma'amSpectacular Rapid! The highlight of the run.
"Wham" is the Sieve drop directly upstream of the Sentinel Pine Covered Bridge.
"Bam" is the bad hole created by water slamming the Left wall creating bad recirculation into the hole...especially bad at lower flows...deceptively so.
"Thank You Ma'am" is the last beautiful falls dumping into a large calm pool.
All but the most bold of boaters will portage the ugly "Wham" sieve. Portaging on River Right affords a spicy seal launch just above "Bam" while others portage directly behind the River Left sieve via a crack with a sketchy walk on the edge of the sieve. Apparently some boaters regularly fire up the narrow hard to hit sieve line at low water but a screw up seems very likely fatal. The Left portage permits a better entry into "Bam", where as the river right seal launch has you on "Bam" in all of 2 seconds. (Note: Close up Sieve pic in AW Gallery)
NOTE: AS OF 10/1/2010 High water event the Big Sieve Hazard is Reportedly Gone or so changed that it was not detected by very experienced boaters. Take care as there will always be a high threat of sieves and wood in this rapid.
Even more conservatively you can climb down directly off the river right seal launching boulder with great care. The down climb is difficult and easy to fall but you will be able to cross a pool, and climbing over one more boulder. Now you will be downstream of "Bam" and in a calm spot to put in to run the final waterfall.
Pictured Boater: Wayne Gman
Simone in the Rock GardensAfter Wham Bam are Fun Steep boulder gardens. Difficulty of drops vary widely but it is not too out of control. Many boaters will read and run on the fly but keep a good eye out for wood.
Boater: Simone Orlandi
Rock Garden Fun SteepsAfter the second covered bridge starts a mile or so of class 3-4 boulder gardens which ramp down towards the end.
Boater: Ryan McCall
reach
state
reachlink
1) Profile Lake–Franconia Notch, Pemigewasset New Hampshire, US (mobile)
User Comments
basin drop right after the flooding. Edit
known to some as Wham in the Wham-Bam-Thankyou-mame rapid.....IS NOW GONE or so changed to greatly
reduce the hazard.
right or probably even run the main drop although it is going to move again soon. Edit
on river left directly above the sieve. The portage is probably not as easy as river right, but it
avoids having to make the sketchy seal launch back into the river if you portage river right. To
execute the "crack in the rock" portage on river left, catch an eddy above the obvious horizon line
just upstream of the covered bridge that contains the nasty sieve on the left. You'll have to
portage a bit down the left bank until you are basically looking down into the sieve. Basically the
large rock that creates the sieve also has a dry crack about 10 feet above river level. You can
pass boats through this crack and then re-enter the river just downstream of the sieve. The footing
is good, but obviously watch your step, because if you slip making the portage you will fall
directly into the sieve. Apparently there are some people who actually run this rapid top to
bottom, but a missed line looks almost certainly fatal. Be safe!