The Spruce Hole Bog, locally known as Spruce Hole, is a complete ecological community occupying a true kettle hole in the town of Durham

Durham, New Hampshire

As of the census of 2000, there were 12,664 people, 2,882 households, and 1,582 families residing in the town. The population density was 565.5 people per square mile . There were 2,923 housing units at an average density of 130.5 per square mile...

, 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...

. It is the last known kettle hole to exist in southern New Hampshire; there were five similar sites in the region, but they have been destroyed. According to the National Register of Natural Landmarks: "It illustrates characteristics of a typical sphagnum-heath bog, localized in a specialized geologic setting." It was designated a National Natural Landmark

National Natural Landmark

The National Natural Landmark program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only natural areas program of national scope that identifies and recognizes the best examples of biological and geological features in...

 in 1972. Spruce Hole is located two miles west of the town center of Durham, and is owned by the town. It is reached by a woods road off Packer's Falls Road, and despite the name the surrounding forest is mostly white pine, hemlock, and birch.

External links

• Brief from the National Registry of Natural Landmarks.
• Spruce Hole locater map.