Franconia Notch is a major mountain pass

Mountain pass

A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...

 through the White Mountains

White Mountains (New Hampshire)

The White Mountains are a mountain range covering about a quarter of the state of New Hampshire and a small portion of western Maine in the United States. Part of the Appalachian Mountains, they are considered the most rugged mountains in New England...

 of New Hampshire

New Hampshire

New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...

. Dominated by Cannon Mountain

Cannon Mountain (New Hampshire)

Cannon Mountain is a peak in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Known for both its technical rock and ice climbing and its skiing , the mountain was home to the Old Man of the Mountain until the formation collapsed on May 3, 2003...

, it lies principally within Franconia Notch State Park

Franconia Notch State Park

Franconia Notch State Park is located in the White Mountains in northern New Hampshire and straddles of Interstate 93 as it passes through Franconia Notch, a mountain pass between the Kinsman Range and Franconia Range...

 and is traversed by the Franconia Notch Parkway (Interstate 93

Interstate 93

Interstate 93 is an Interstate Highway in the New England section of the United States. Its southern terminus is in Canton, Massachusetts, in the Boston metropolitan area, at Interstate 95; its northern terminus is near St. Johnsbury, Vermont, at Interstate 91...

 and U.S. Route 3

U.S. Route 3

U.S. Route 3 is a north–south United States highway that runs from its southern terminus in Cambridge, Massachusetts through New Hampshire to its terminus near Third Connecticut Lake at the Canadian border, where the road continues north as Quebec Route 257.In New Hampshire parts of US 3 are...

).

The notch was home to the Old Man of the Mountain

Old Man of the Mountain

The Old Man of the Mountain, also known as the Great Stone Face or the Profile, was a series of five granite cliff ledges on Cannon Mountain in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, USA that, when viewed from the north, appeared to be the jagged profile of a face. The rock formation was above...

, a rock formation whose profile is a symbol of the state of New Hampshire, until 2003, when the formation collapsed.

The notch is located primarily in the town of Franconia, New Hampshire

Franconia, New Hampshire

Franconia is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,104 at the 2010 census. Set in the White Mountains, Franconia is home to the northern half of Franconia Notch State Park. Parts of the White Mountain National Forest are in the eastern and southern portions...

 but extends south into Lincoln

Lincoln, New Hampshire

Lincoln is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. It is the second-largest town by area in New Hampshire. The population was 1,662 at the 2010 census. The town is home to the New Hampshire Highland Games and to a portion of Franconia Notch State Park. Set in the White Mountains,...

. It is bordered to the east by the Franconia Ridge, comprising Lafayette, Lincoln

Mount Lincoln (New Hampshire)

Mount Lincoln is a 5,089-foot-high mountain within the Franconia Range of the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Lincoln is located between Little Haystack and Mount Lafayette. All three overlook Franconia Notch. The west side of Lincoln drains into the main stem of the Pemigewasset River...

, and Little Haystack

Little Haystack Mountain (New Hampshire)

Little Haystack Mountain is a mountain located in Grafton County, New Hampshire. The mountain is a peak on the Franconia Range of the White Mountains...

 mountains, and to the west by Cannon Mountain

Cannon Mountain (New Hampshire)

Cannon Mountain is a peak in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Known for both its technical rock and ice climbing and its skiing , the mountain was home to the Old Man of the Mountain until the formation collapsed on May 3, 2003...

. The notch's height of land

Water divide

A drainage divide, water divide, divide or watershed is the line separating neighbouring drainage basins...

 is located near its northern end, at the base of Cannon Mountain. Echo Lake

Echo Lake (Franconia Notch)

Echo Lake is a water body located in Franconia Notch in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, at the foot of Cannon Mountain. The lake is in the Connecticut River watershed, near the height of land in Franconia Notch; water from the lake's outlet flows north via Lafayette Brook to the Gale River,...

 lies just north of the high point of the notch, with an outlet that flows into Lafayette Brook, the Gale River

Gale River

The Gale River is a 13.1 mile long tributary of the Ammonoosuc River in northwestern New Hampshire in the United States. Via the Ammonoosuc, it is part of the watershed of the Connecticut River, which flows to Long Island Sound....

, the Ammonoosuc River

Ammonoosuc River

The Ammonoosuc River is a river, 55 mi long, in northwestern New Hampshire in the United States. It is a tributary of the Connecticut River, which flows to Long Island Sound. "Ammonoosuc" is Abnaki for "small, narrow fishing place"....

, and finally the Connecticut River

Connecticut River

The Connecticut River is the largest and longest river in New England, and also an American Heritage River. It flows roughly south, starting from the Fourth Connecticut Lake in New Hampshire. After flowing through the remaining Connecticut Lakes and Lake Francis, it defines the border between the...

, which enters Long Island Sound

Long Island Sound

Long Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...

 at Old Saybrook, Connecticut

Old Saybrook, Connecticut

Old Saybrook is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 10,367 at the 2000 census. It contains the incorporated borough of Fenwick, as well as the census-designated places of Old Saybrook Center and Saybrook Manor.-History:...

. Just south of the height of land, Profile Lake

Profile Lake

Profile Lake is a water body located in Franconia Notch in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, at the foot of Cannon Mountain. The lake was given its name due to its location directly beneath the Old Man of the Mountain, a famous rock formation which collapsed in 2003...

 lies beneath the cliff that once held the Old Man of the Mountain. Profile Lake is the source of the Pemigewasset River

Pemigewasset River

The Pemigewasset River , known locally as "The Pemi", is a river in the state of New Hampshire, the United States. It is in length and drains approximately...

, the primary tributary of the Merrimack River

Merrimack River

The Merrimack River is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into Massachusetts, and then flows northeast until it empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Newburyport...

, which flows to the Gulf of Maine

Gulf of Maine

The Gulf of Maine is a large gulf of the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of North America.It is delineated by Cape Cod at the eastern tip of Massachusetts in the southwest and Cape Sable at the southern tip of Nova Scotia in the northeast. It includes the entire coastlines of the U.S...

 at Newburyport, Massachusetts

Newburyport, Massachusetts

Newburyport is a small coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, 35 miles northeast of Boston. The population was 21,189 at the 2000 census. A historic seaport with a vibrant tourism industry, Newburyport includes part of Plum Island...

.

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