Winnipesaukee River

43°32′54″N 71°27′54″W / 43.54833°N 71.46500°W / 43.54833; -71.46500 • elevation504 ft (154 m) MouthMerrimack RiverFranklin43°26′14″N 71°38′53″W / 43.43722°N 71.64806°W / 43.43722; -71.64806261 ft (80 m)Length10.5 mi (16.9 km)Basin featuresTributaries  • leftJewett Brook, Tioga River, Williams Brook • rightWinding Hill Brook, Gulf Brook, Packer Brook

The Winnipesaukee River is a 10.5-mile-long (16.9 km)^[1] river that connects Lake Winnipesaukee with the Pemigewasset and Merrimack rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire. The river is in the Lakes Region of central New Hampshire. The river's drainage area is approximately 488 square miles (1,264 km²).

The river has two distinct sections. The upstream section consists of a series of river courses connecting a chain of lakes, beginning with Lake Winnipesaukee. From the dam at the outlet of Lake Winnipesaukee in the Lakeport section of Laconia, the river almost immediately enters Opechee Bay. 1 mile (1.6 km) down the lake, the river exits over a dam and drops through the center of Laconia, its banks lined by industrial buildings from the 19th century that were constructed to take advantage of the river's power. The 1-mile (1.6 km) section through Laconia ends at Lake Winnisquam, the fourth-largest lake in New Hampshire. A 5-mile (8 km) stretch across Winnisquam leads to the dam at the lake's outlet and a short descent to Silver Lake.

The river's lower section begins at the natural outlet of Silver Lake, on the boundary between Belmont and Tilton, New Hampshire. The river passes through the center of the twin towns of Tilton and Northfield, then descends through a narrow valley to Franklin where additional small dams use the river's power. From Tilton to Franklin, the river has a drop of up to 90 feet per mile (17 m/km), with challenging rapids for sport boaters who put in at Cross Mill Bridge and take out at the U.S. Route 3 Sanborn Bridge in downtown Franklin. A USGS water gage is in Tilton.^[2]

The Winnipesaukee River joins the Pemigewasset River just downstream from the center of Franklin, forming the Merrimack River.

See also

• List of New Hampshire rivers

References

External links

Tributaries

Massachusetts

Artichoke River Assabet River Back River Beaver Brook Cochichewick River Concord River Little River Merrimack River Nashua River Nissitissit River North Nashua River Phillips Brook Powwow River Quinapoxet River Salmon Brook Shawsheen River South Branch Souhegan River South Nashua River Spicket River Squannacook River Stillwater River Stony Brook Sudbury River Trout Brook Vine Brook Whitman River

New Hampshire

Baboosic Brook Back River Baker River Bear Brook Beards Brook Beaver Brook Beebe River Big River Black Brook Blackwater River Cockermouth River Cohas Brook Contoocook River East Branch Baker River East Branch Pemigewasset River Fowler River Frazier Brook Gridley River Gunstock River Lane River Little River (Big River) Little River (Merrimack River) Little Massabesic Brook-Sucker Brook Little Suncook River Lost River Mad River Melvin River Merrimack River Merrymeeting River Middle Branch Piscataquog River Moosilauke Brook Nashua River Newfound River Nissitissit River North Branch Contoocook River North Fork East Branch Pemigewasset River Nubanusit Brook Pemigewasset River Pennichuck Brook Piscataquog River Powwow River Purgatory Brook Red Hill River Salmon Brook Shedd Brook Smith River Soucook River Souhegan River South Branch Baker River South Branch Piscataquog River South Branch Souhegan River Spicket River Squam River Stony Brook Suncook River Tioga River Turkey River Warner River West Branch Mad River West Branch Souhegan River West Branch Warner River Winnipesaukee River

Lakes

Massachusetts

Lake Attitash Lake Boon Lake Cochichewick Lake Cochituate Fairhaven Bay Haggetts Pond Lost Lake Lake Saltonstall Tuxbury Pond Wachusett Reservoir Walden Pond

New Hampshire

Arlington Mill Reservoir Ayers Island Reservoir Baboosic Lake Canobie Lake Cobbetts Pond Contoocook Lake Country Pond Crystal Lake (Gilmanton) Crystal Lake (Manchester) Deering Reservoir Franklin Pierce Lake Great Pond Halfmoon Lake Harrisville Pond Highland Lake Hopkins Pond (Adder Pond) Island Pond (Derry) Island Pond (Stoddard) Jenness Pond Lake Kanasatka Little Squam Lake Locke Lake Lonesome Lake Massabesic Lake Lake Massasecum Merrymeeting Lake Mirror Lake Newfound Lake Northwood Lake Nubanusit Lake Opechee Bay Paugus Bay Pemigewasset Lake Penacook Lake Pleasant Lake (Deerfield) Pleasant Lake (New London) Potanipo Pond Powder Mill Pond Powwow Pond Profile Lake Sebbins Pond Silver Lake (Hollis) Skatutakee Lake Lake Solitude Squam Lake Stinson Lake Suncook Lakes Sunset Lake Thorndike Pond Turkey Ponds Tuxbury Pond Lake Waukewan Weare Reservoir Webster Lake Lake Wentworth White Oak Pond Lake Wicwas Willard Pond Lake Winnipesaukee Lake Winnisquam

Towns

Massachusetts

Acton Amesbury Andover Ashland Bedford Billerica Burlington Chelmsford Clinton Concord Dracut Fitchburg Framingham Groton Groveland Haverhill Hopkinton Hudson Lawrence Leominster Lexington Lowell Lunenburg Marlborough Maynard Merrimac Methuen Newburyport North Andover Northborough Pepperell Salisbury Sudbury Tewksbury Tyngsborough West Newbury Westborough Westford

New Hampshire

Allenstown Amherst Ashland Atkinson Bedford Belmont Boscawen Bow Bridgewater Bristol Campton Canterbury Concord Derry Franklin Gilford Goffstown Hampstead Hill Hillsborough Holderness Hollis Hooksett Hopkinton Hudson Kingston Laconia Lincoln Litchfield Londonderry Manchester Meredith Merrimack Milford Nashua New Hampton Northfield Pelham Pembroke Penacook Peterborough Plaistow Plymouth Salem Sanbornton Suncook Thornton Tilton Weare Windham Wolfeboro Woodstock

Landmarks