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 . They are a subrange of the northern Appalachian Mountains and the most rugged mountains in New England . Several of the higher peaks contain an Alpine tundra . The range is heavily visited due to its proximity to Boston , New York City , and Montreal .
19-592: The Israel River , sometimes referred to as Israel's River , is a 23.2-mile-long (37.3 km) river in the White Mountains of New Hampshire , in the United States. It rises in the township of Low and Burbank's Grant and runs generally northwest along U.S. Route 2 , traversing the towns of Jefferson and Lancaster , before joining the Connecticut River . The Abenaki people called
38-544: A "school", since they did not all paint in the same style as, for example, those artists of the Hudson River School . Nathaniel Hawthorne chose the White Mountains as the setting for his short story " The Great Carbuncle ". Other White Mountain tales by Hawthorne include " The Ambitious Guest ", "Sketches from Memory" and "The Great Stone Face". The White Mountain region also figures prominently in
57-475: A natural feature dubbed "The Basin", consisting of a granite bowl, 20 feet (6 m) in diameter, fed by a waterfall, worn smooth by the Pemigewasset River . The areas around The Basin are popular spots for swimming in the cold water. The range is crossed north–south by U.S. Route 3 and Interstate 93 through Franconia Notch and New Hampshire Route 16 through Pinkham Notch , and east–west by
76-428: A retail price of one dollar. Other early maps of the region were drawn by H. Conant and by Harvard astronomer George Phillips Bond , who published the first topographical map of the region in 1853. The White Mountains drew hundreds of painters during the 19th century. This group of artists is sometimes referred to as belonging to the "White Mountain school" of art. Others dispute the notion that these painters were
95-644: A rock unit of the White Mountains, found in central New Hampshire, is of interest to researchers due to the fact that it contains feldspathoids as well as quartz-bearing rocks. The White Mountain National Forest , formed in 1911 after passage of the Weeks Act , includes most of the mountain range and now covers 800,000 acres (3,200 km ) in New Hampshire and western Maine. The Mount Washington Auto Road and Mount Washington Cog Railway ascend
114-617: Is an old covered bridge on Mechanic Street in Lancaster (closed in 2004 for major repairs and since reopened). White Mountains (New Hampshire) Most of the area is public land, including the White Mountain National Forest and a number of state parks . Its most famous mountain is 6,288-foot (1,917 m) Mount Washington , which is the highest peak in the Northeastern U.S. and for 76 years held
133-594: Is named for Israel's brother John. The Israel River rises near the foot of Mount Adams , at the juncture of Castle Brook and Cascade Brook. With its numerous tributaries, the river drains the northwestern slopes of Mount Adams and Mt. Jefferson in the Presidential Range , the northern slopes of the Dartmouth Range , and the southern slopes of the Pliny Range. The larger tributaries include
152-475: Is that the mica -laden granite of the summits looked white to observers. The White Mountains are a physiographic section of the larger New England province , which in turn is part of the larger Appalachian Highlands physiographic division. The magma intrusions forming the White Mountains today were created 124 to 100 million years ago as the North American Plate moved westward over
171-496: The Kancamagus Highway (part of New Hampshire Route 112 ) through Kancamagus Pass and U.S. Route 302 through Crawford Notch . Many of these highways are designated as scenic routes . Several amusement parks lie in or near the White Mountains, including Story Land , Santa's Village , Whale's Tale Water Park and Clark's Trading Post . The White Mountains region is also home to numerous hiking attractions through
190-569: The New England hotspot . Widespread evidence of glaciation may be seen in the U-shaped form of various notches, or mountain passes . Glacial cirques form the heads of Tuckerman Ravine on Mt. Washington and King Ravine on Mt. Adams . Glacial striations are visible at numerous locations, including on the exposed rocks at the summit of Pine Mountain in Gorham . The Red Hill Syenite ,
209-605: The South Branch , The Mystic, Castle Brook, Cascade Brook, Stag Hollow Brook, Priscilla Brook (also called Alder Brook), Red Brook, Mill Brook, Garland Brook, and Otter Brook. Major highway bridges over the river include New Hampshire Route 115 , U.S. Route 2 and New Hampshire Route 115A in Jefferson, and U.S. Route 3 on Main Street in Lancaster. A number of smaller bridges are provided for snowmobile trails, and there
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#1732780059176228-530: The border between it and Maine. In all, there are 48 peaks within New Hampshire as well as one ( Old Speck Mountain ) in Maine over 4,000 feet (1,200 m), known as the four-thousand footers . The Whites are known for a system of alpine huts for hikers operated by the Appalachian Mountain Club . The Appalachian Trail crosses the area from southwest to northeast. It is not clear where
247-483: The first two tourist maps of the mountains was that produced by Franklin Leavitt, a self-taught artist born near Lancaster, New Hampshire in 1824. Leavitt's hand-drawn map, today in the collection of Harvard University , is largely folk art , but does convey some of the region's features. Leavitt drew several versions of his map, beginning in 1852. The fourth version, printed in 1871, was printed at Boston and carried
266-538: The like. The Mount Washington Hotel located in Bretton Woods was the site of the Bretton Woods Conference following World War II , and today remains one of the few early twentieth century grand hotels still in use. An estimated six million visitors visit the region yearly. Some of the earliest maps of the White Mountains were produced as tourist maps and not topographical maps. One of
285-533: The name "White Mountains" came from. There is no record of what Native Americans called the range, although pre-Colonial names for many individual peaks are known. The name and similar ones such as "White Hills" or "Wine Hills" are found in literature from Colonial times. According to tradition, the mountains were first sighted from shipboard off the coast near the Piscataqua estuary . The highest peaks would often be snow-capped, appearing white. An alternate theory
304-559: The range's highest peak, which hosts a visitor center and weather observatory . Heavily visited Arethusa Falls , the second tallest waterfall in New Hampshire, lies on a southwest flank of Crawford Notch. The Old Man of the Mountain , a rock formation on Cannon Mountain that resembled the craggy profile of a man's face, was a White Mountain landmark until it fell in May 2003. It remains the state symbol of New Hampshire. The range also includes
323-539: The record for fastest surface wind gust in the world (231 miles per hour (372 km/h) in 1934). Mount Washington is part of a line of summits, the Presidential Range , that are named after U.S. presidents and other prominent Americans. The White Mountains also include the Franconia Range , Sandwich Range , Carter-Moriah Range and Kinsman Range in New Hampshire, and the Mahoosuc Range straddling
342-488: The river Siwooganock , which means "place of the burnt pine trees". The first name given to the river by English settlers was "Powers River" in honor of Captain Peter Powers (1707-1757), who in 1754 became the first to explore this area. The present name comes from an early hunter and trapper named Israel Glines, whose camp was situated near the outlet of the river. The Johns River , in the nearby town of Whitefield ,
361-731: The various river gorges, ravines, and caves in the area. The Flume Gorge , Lost River Reservation and Polar Caves Park all provide moderate hikes that one can complete in a few hours. Skiing is a popular attraction in the area. Cannon Mountain Ski Area , Loon Mountain Ski Resort , Attitash Mountain Resort , Wildcat Mountain Ski Area , Bretton Woods Mountain Resort , and Waterville Valley Resort are all popular winter ski resorts, and many of them provide year-round outdoor activities such as bridle paths , hiking trails, alpine slides , and
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