NH – Arethusa Falls (Crawford Notch, NH)
[Caution: This is not a trail guide. If you are planning to do this hike, consult a real trail guide (for example this one), have a map, compass, and other reasonable hiking equipment.]
At 180-200 feet, Arethusa Falls is the highest waterfall in New Hampshire. The trail begins at the Arethusa Falls parking lot, on the west side of US 301, 3.4 miles south of the Wiley House in Crawford Notch.
The parking area is at 1,240 feet. The trail starts just across the railroad, and is 1.5 miles with an elevation gain of 900 feet. It is a well-known and relatively easy attraction that we knew we would have to share with a pretty good crowd on Labor Day weekend.
At 1.0 miles, the trail crosses the first of two bridges, photos of which are on the return trip below. After the second bridge, it climbs steadily to a spot where it meet the Arethusa-Ripley Falls Trail, .2 miles above the falls. The A-R trail can be taken to do a long loop back to Route 302, either staying on the A-R trail, or connecting to and then taking the Frankenstein Cliff Trail.
We continued left to head to Arethusa Falls, descending more than 100 feet from the trail junction.
Once at the falls, we rock-hopped to cross Bemis Brook to get a great look at the falls.
At 1.0 miles, the trail crosses the first of two bridges, photos of which are on the return trip below. After the second bridge, it climbs steadily to a spot where it meet the Arethusa-Ripley Falls Trail, .2 miles above the falls. The A-R trail can be taken to do a long loop back to Route 302, either staying on the A-R trail, or connecting to and then taking the Frankenstein Cliff Trail.
We continued left to head to Arethusa Falls, descending more than 100 feet from the trail junction.
Once at the falls, we rock-hopped to cross Bemis Brook to get a great look at the falls.
After a nice long break, pictures, and snacks, we headed back.
Here are the two bridges we crossed on the way back.
Here is a Google Earth shot of the hike. You can see where we turned left to head down to the falls.
Rating (explanation of our hike ratings):
Bang for the buck: High
Length of hike: 2/5
Strenuous: 2/5
Trail Composition: 1/4 (see note below)
Ease of following trail: 1/3
note: Around the base of the falls are a lot of rocks and quite a bit of water. It is not difficult to get around but a bit tricky.