Pond Brook, New Hampshire, US
|
|
Baker Pond to Wentworth
| Usual Difficulty |
IV-V (for normal flows) |
| Length |
3 Miles |
| Avg. Gradient |
110 fpm |
| Max Gradient |
180 fpm |
Backyard Boof
Backyard BoofPhoto of Dave Livingston by Mark Lacroix taken 05/21/06 @ 3.4 ft
Gauge Information
River Description
Pond Brook is a very narrow steep creek. The river starts out class III then eases somewhat through
a swampy area. The action picks up at about the 1 mile mark then quickly starts to build up to
continuous class IV and V. It's geology is somewhat unusual for New England, it has a lot of ledgy
type drops of 2' to 3' spaced closely to each other. One drop runs over a granite slide that drops
approximately 30' over a 100' distance. Some of the river can be scouted from state route 25A which
runs along the run but many drops are out of view from the road.
Pond Brook is located in the Upper Baker River valley about 16 miles west of Plymouth. It is a
relatively small river that drains Lower Baker Pond. The river itself starts at the dam at Lower
Baker Pond. There is good warmup rapids for the first half mile but you must portage around a low
snowmobile bridge then contend with some flat water. For this reason most paddlers chose to put in
½ mile further downstream where NH 25A comes close to the river. At this point the river is flat
and running through an open marsh. Shortly after the river enters the forest class II-III rapids
begin. The most significant factors in this section are tree falls and strainers. Boat scout each
drop carefully to avoid problems. The action picks up about a mile and half below Lower Baker Pond.
Some class III ledge drops start appearing the first of which is "Roadside". More small ledge drops
continue until they start to pick up in intensity just after the 2 mile mark. The remaining mile of
river contains the largest and most intense rapids. It is mostly away from the road but never more
than a quarter mile. Starting at Z-chute there is evidence of river modifications for mills built
in the 19th century. These mills are long gone but the rock work is evident all the way to the last
rapid.
Posted by Dan Holzman on the MVP message board 3/30/03
Pond Brook has some outstanding ledges, very photogenic, ends with a totally sweet set of slides
and a 10 foot waterfall (built in boof ledge, note to self, get back there soon before water runs
out, gotta run those ledges).
Beta on Pond Brook: there is a low snowmobile bridge or similar about 1 mile downstream of the
put-in at the dam, mandatory portage. There is a log across the river in the first big drop about
1.2 miles downstream, MANDATORY portage, don't miss the eddy above this drop. Lessel's book makes
this sound like a death creek, it isn't, the group ran all the drops with no major issues, however
watch for lumber (as usual on creeks), and try not to hit your head (ditto).
Technical info
Put in elevation........885'
Take out elevation......557'
Total drop..............328'
Average drop/mile.......110'
1st mile................26'
2nd mile................159'
3rd mile................143'
Distance................3.0 miles
River width average.....18'
River geology...........Granite ledge, small to medium boulders
River water quality.....Excellent, clarity good to excellent.
Scenery.................Good mountain scenery, route 25a occasionally visible
on river left.
Wildlife................Deer, moose, hawks.
Directions
Put in
From southern NH
Take interstate 93 to exit 26 (Tenney mtn highway rt 25) 16 miles to Wentworth NH
Take a left on NH 25A
2.5 miles to where the river comes in close on the left. This is the first option put in. You can
continue another 1/3 mile to Lower Baker Dam for the short warm up. The first option put in has
limited parking just make sure you pull well off the road.
Put in
From Vermont
Take interstate 91
Take EXIT 15 toward US-5 / FAIRLEE / ORFORD N.H
Turn RIGHT onto LAKE MOREY RD.
Turn LEFT onto US-5
Turn RIGHT onto BRIDGE ST / VT-25A. Continue to follow VT-25A (Crossing into NEW HAMPSHIRE).
Turn LEFT onto BAKERS POND RD / NH-25A. Continue to follow NH-25A 13 miles to the Lower Baker Pond
put in or continue another 1/3 mile to the roadside put in.
Take out
Head back to Wentworth and take a right on NH route 25.
Take a right on Ellsworth Lane road.
Park near the bridge at Back Yard rapid.
If you have many vehicles to park continue south on 25 over the Baker River Bridge then take a
right onto the town ball field parking area close to the river.
Rapid Naming Convention
It is not the intention of the author to name rapids for his own personal ego. Every effort was
made to find the current, historical, or conventional name for each rapid. Unfortunately, Pond
Brook is not run very often and paddlers have not named even the toughest sections. Historical
records and maps do not have any information. Names assigned on this page and associated map were
given by the author. Those names are mostly generic and are given to identify a unique feature
(i.e. Z-chute) or location (i.e. Powerline) prevalent on or near the rapid. If in the future the
traditional name is uncovered or paddlers begin to accept a new name, the author will attempt to
change those names to correspond with the accepted norm.
StreamTeam Status: Verified
Last Updated: 2006-05-29 18:05:35
Rivers of the Middle Pemigewasset region
Paul at Roadside
Dave at Funnel Ledge
Dave at Island Drop
Butch at the top of Megaslide
Marc at Z-curl
Dave at Powerline
Marc at Minislide
Backyard Slide
User Comments
damage throughout the region, the worst in over 100 years. More than half the rivers in Vermont and
northern New Hampshire recorded their highest flow levels ever. Many roads, guardrails, power
lines, bridges, trees and other debris now litter several rivers throughout the region. River beds
have been scoured and changed course, many new strainers make navigation problematic at best and
downright dangerous at worse. Please realize that the river description you see here may not match
current situation after the floods. Use common sense and when in doubt scout especially on blind
drops. Also, if you run this river in the next year or so please comment on its navigability, even
if there are no problems this will be very helpful. Please report any new strainers or changes to
the rapids that will impact future boating. Thank you,
then: It is a great run because it is very continuous class III, with most of the drops described
in detail being in the IV range. So even for a really good boater you're never bored, nor is there
any flatwater to get across. About halfway through the run, not long after you leave the road, the
first horizon line means you have gotten into "Hola" and now the thick of the things. It is
basically a 1 meter drop into a very aerated hole, but brace well coming through, as there is
another hole immediately below due to a shallow rock that will great you in the language of it's
choosing. Prediction: pain. Then it is back to the class III boat scouting for a while. After half
a kilometer (1/3 mi.) brings you to a sloping drop into a ledge with a large rock at the bottom
right. You want to run this far right to avoid the piton rock which left an indelible impression on
2 of the 10 boats that have run it, gaining it the name "Pignose." 100 meters down is "Lefty's
Grave" due to the Tombstone-esque rock on ricer left which 90% of the flow drops onto. Boof center
with right angle and then work back left to catch the homeplate eddy (get in and you're safe). A
swim would be ugly, as 15 meters (20 yards) down are two cass IV back-to-back. The first is "Right
Slide Up," as 'tis a slippery slope of rock and any inversion would be most unfortunate. The
problematic of said rapid is the guardian rock above the eddy at the bottom right which you want to
catch. The eddy, that is, not the rock. You can sneak past the rock on the far right, or run the
hero route down the middle and then eddy out. Immediately below this is Screw Two (too?), a drop
named for its striking similarity to Corkscrew in the five falls of Chatooga section IV, only
mirrored left-to-right. Start river right and peel out wide to prevent dropping down the vertical
shaft, ride up onto the hole/pillow at the bottom left and get flushed to the right. It's all in
the line-up. After that, you just drop in and hold on. Another quarter kilometer brings you to
"Power Trip," easily recognizable by the high-voltage lines which are the reason for the clear cut
up to the road mentioned in the "level" section above. Go left on the first ledge, and then either
sneak left, or work center to left. It's best to scout the next bit when checking the level, as the
channel has been straightened and it is non-stop until the end of the clear cut, and any strainers
here would be quite a bummer. The next rapid, just below the Bachelor family's home is quite a
party. Run the two ledges center to right, punching the hole and watching out for the curler of f
the left wall. Things mellow for a half a kilometer or so as you come into "civilization," at least
by central New Hampshire standards. The river winds through a few people's back yards, passing in
to the "center" of Wentworth. The next significant drop is "Jiffy Lube" which you can run blind
just entering center and sliding down the right. I'd run it sans scouting if the locals seem to be
getting restless. Unfortunately the final/crux rapid is up next and scouting is definitely advised.
You're definitely in someone's back yard, so try to be nice. Across the street is the Wentworth
Inn. If you stay there (a quaint old place) tell them the first folks to kayak the river sent you,
and we say "hey." It can't cost much, and ensures good vibes and easy access to this fine stretch
and the proximity to other good creeks is phenomenal. Anyways, the "Inn-d of the Road" is a solid
IV+, with some maneuvering at the entrance which would be great on it's own, but then goes over a
2-3meter drop that you want to boof well, as there's rocks down thar, particularly on the left. You
should have felt comfortable with everything else if you're thinking about running this, not only
because of the consequences, but just think how embarrassing it will be if the good 'ol folks at
the Wentworth Inn are standing riverside with their camera and yours and you pencil into "the
granite of New Hampshire." It could be ugly. And you might make the Wentworth paper as the first
hack to run the drop. Mileage, name on AW site, class per AW; our names. 1.6 Roadside III; Hola.
2.1 Funnel III+; Right Slide Up. 2.3 Island III; Lefty's Demise. 2.3 Megaslide 5.0; Screw 2. 2.4
Z-Chute III+; I considered this the lead-in of Power Trip. 2.5 Powerline IV; Power Trip. 2.6;
Minislide IV; Bachelor Party. 2.9 Backyard Slide IV; Jiffy Lube. 3.0 Backyard Boof IV; Innd Of the
Road. 3.1 Take Out.