Mount Pemigewasset
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Mount Pemigewasset rises to 769 m in New Hampshire. Mount Lafayette stands 1,600 m to the north-northeast, 5.1 miles off. The nearest named place is Indian Head, a cliff less than a tenth of a mile away. White Mountain Trail passes 0.7 miles off.
The story
Mount Pemigewasset, or Indian Head, is a mountain in Franconia Notch in the White Mountains in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. It lies near the town of Lincoln. The mountain is known for the distinctive cliff along the southern side of its summit, which resembles the profile of a Native American head. Such shapes are formed when water enters cracks in the granite. Over time, the water freezes and expands, which further shapes and cracks the rock. The "face" measures 98 feet (30 m) from chin to forehead, and the mountain itself has an elevation of 2,530 feet (770 m). The head shape has been noted since the early 19th century. It was partly hidden by trees near the chin, but a 1901 forest fire revealed the full profile. The mountain received more attention after a better-known rock formation in the White Mountains, the Old Man of the Mountain, collapsed in 2003. The "Indian Head" will eventually lose its shape as well. Pemigewasset is an Abenaki Indian word meaning "rapidly moving", and it also names the nearby Pemigewasset River. The Native American Pemigewasset tribe lived in the area in the 17th and 18th centuries, and a legend of the Abenaki people tells that Chief Pemigewasset spied for enemies from the top of the mountain. According to an 1898 guidebook, "The view on a moonlight night from the top of this vast cliff is awe inspiring." The Indian Head Resort, a more than one-hundred-year-old tourist facility, has a view over the mountain as well as a viewing tower.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikidata Q34882971, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What the record says
- Elevation
- 769 m
How to reach it
- 0.7 mi off the White Mountain Trail, National
- 3.8 mi off the Kancamagus Scenic Byway, National
- 4.7 mi off the River Heritage Tour
- 13.9 mi off the Connecticut River Byway, National
Overlooks nearby
- Profiler Plaza · 5 mi
- Pemigewasset Overlook · 11 mi
- CL Graham Wangan Overlook · 11 mi
- Beaver Brook Overlook · 12 mi
Named places within 25 miles
- Indian Head: 0.0 mi
- Shining Rock Cliff: 3.7 mi
- Cannon Cliff: 4.2 mi
- Cannon Cliff: 4.2 mi
- Moby Grape: 4.2 mi
- Little Coolidge Mountain: 2.5 mi
- South Kinsman Mountain: 2.5 mi
- Mount Wolf: 3.0 mi
- Mount Liberty: 3.1 mi
- Big Coolidge Mountain: 3.1 mi
- Second Presidential State Forest: 2.6 mi
- Rachel Adams Memorial Forest: 3.7 mi
- Fay State Forest: 3.9 mi
- Fay State Forest: 4.3 mi
- Lafayette Brook Scenic Area: 5.3 mi
- Kanc Recreation Area: 3.6 mi
- Cascade Park: 4.6 mi
- Soldiers Park: 4.7 mi
- Franconia Notch State Park: 5.0 mi
- White Mountain Motorsports Park: 6.4 mi
- Harvard Falls: 1.4 mi
- Avalanche Falls: 1.5 mi
- Georgiana Falls: 1.7 mi
- Kinsman Falls: 1.7 mi
- Stairs Falls: 3.0 mi
- Flume Gorge & Visitor Center: 0.9 mi
- Liberty Gorge: 1.2 mi
- Table Rock Flume Brook: 1.3 mi
- Flume Gorge: 1.5 mi
- The Basin: 1.8 mi
- Governor Gallen Memorial: 5.9 mi
- Caddy Camp Alumni Memorial: 12.9 mi
- Bath New Hampshire: 13.9 mi
- Chase cellar hole: 14.1 mi
- Nancy Pfannenstiehl: 14.1 mi
- Avery's Garage: 3.4 mi
- Clark History Museum: 3.4 mi
- Americana Museum: 3.4 mi
- Pemigewasset Hook & Ladder: 3.5 mi
- Old Man of the Mountain Museum: 4.9 mi
- Fay Waside Picnic Area: 3.9 mi
- Mount Cleveland Picnic Area: 10.1 mi
- Beaver Brook Recreation Area: 11.1 mi
- Zealand Picnic Area: 15.2 mi
- Campton Day Use Area: 16.1 mi
- Liberty Spring: 2.9 mi
- Lac Littleton: 17.0 mi
- Elliott Spring: 21.3 mi
- lower falls: 23.3 mi
- Gulfside Spring: 24.1 mi
- The Basin, East: 1.8 mi
- The Basin, West: 2.0 mi
- Boise Rock: 4.0 mi
- Littleton Rest Area: 18.0 mi
- Vermont Welcome Center: 20.7 mi
- Tree Harp: 14.8 mi
- Sunflowers: 14.9 mi
- Pollyanna Statue: 14.9 mi
- Local Boyscout Harold A. Webster Jr.: 23.5 mi
- Echo Lake Beach: 5.5 mi
- Sandwich Town Beach: 24.5 mi
- Mary Bierbrier Community Garden: 14.4 mi
- Peace Garden: 23.2 mi
- Livermore: 16.1 mi
Other summits around it
The highest named summits within 8.7 miles of Mount Pemigewasset. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Lafayette | NNE 32° | 1,600 m | 5.1 mi |
| Mount Lincoln | NE 37° | 1,551.12 m | 4.4 mi |
| North Lincoln | NE 35° | 1,524 m | 4.8 mi |
| North Lafayette | NNE 29° | 1,519 m | 5.4 mi |
| Mount Moosilauke | SW 232° | 1,468 m | 8.3 mi |
| Little Haystack Mountain | NE 42° | 1,440 m | 4.0 mi |
| Mount Blue | SW 233° | 1,380 m | 7.6 mi |
| West Bond | ENE 63° | 1,358 m | 8.7 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 06:51 | 18:21 | 18:59 |
| June solstice | 05:04 | 19:50 | 20:34 |
| September equinox | 06:35 | 18:08 | 18:46 |
| December solstice | 07:19 | 15:24 | 16:12 |
Local time (America/New_York).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: May–Sep.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 18 | 20 | 29 | 42 | 54 | 63 | 68 | 66 | 59 | 47 | 36 | 26 |
| Precip in | 3.4 | 3.0 | 3.4 | 5.2 | 4.2 | 4.8 | 6.0 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 5.4 | 4.7 | 4.7 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Lincoln Nepp, 4 mi away.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapWikidataOpenStreetMap element node/357730558
Day trips start here
- Wentworth · 19 mi
- Fairlee · 26 mi
- Ashland · 28 mi
- Center Harbor · 29 mi
Take the scenic way to Mount Pemigewasset.
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