Lost River Reservation
Encyclopedia
Cave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
s in 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...
in Woodstock
Woodstock, New Hampshire
Woodstock is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,374 at the 2010 census. Woodstock includes the village of North Woodstock, the commercial center. Its extensive land area is largely forested, and includes the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest. Parts of the...
, 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...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Located 5 miles (8 km) west of the village of North Woodstock
North Woodstock, New Hampshire
North Woodstock is a census-designated place in the town of Woodstock in Grafton County, New Hampshire. It had a population of 528 at the 2010 census....
on New Hampshire Route 112
New Hampshire Route 112
New Hampshire Route 112 is a long east–west state highway in northern New Hampshire. The highway winds across the state, connecting Bath to Conway via the scenic and mountainous area of the White Mountain National Forest. Part of this highway, which runs through the White Mountains, is known as...
, Lost River Reservation is set in Kinsman Notch
Kinsman Notch
Kinsman Notch is a mountain pass located in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, United States. It is the westernmost of the major notches through the White Mountains...
. One of 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...
major passes
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...
, Kinsman Notch lies between Mount Moosilauke and Kinsman Ridge at just under 2000 feet (609.6 m) above sea level. Lost River Reservation is owned by the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests is a private, non-profit land-conservation organization based in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. It purchases or is given easements or outright ownership of undeveloped land, as a way to keep it open, and also performs advocacy and education...
.
The Lost River
Lost River (New Hampshire)
The Lost River is a stream located in the White Mountains of New Hampshire in the United States. It is a tributary of the Pemigewasset River, part of the Merrimack River watershed....
is so-named because the brook draining the southern part of Kinsman Notch disappears below the surface in a narrow, steep-walled glacial gorge. The gorge is partially filled with immense blocks of granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
, through the spaces of which the brook cascades along its subterranean course until it eventually emerges and joins 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...
, which flows southward from Franconia Notch
Franconia Notch
Franconia Notch is a major mountain pass through the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Dominated by Cannon Mountain, it lies principally within Franconia Notch State Park and is traversed by the Franconia Notch Parkway Franconia Notch (el. 1950 ft. / 590 m.) is a major mountain pass through...
.