Grand Traverses: Franconia Ridge
Enjoy panoramic views on an exposed, granite ridgewalk.
Get full access to Outside Learn, our online education hub featuring in-depth fitness, nutrition, and adventure courses and more than 2,000 instructional videos when you sign up for Outside+ Sign up for Outside+ today.
Table of Contents | Pfiffner Traverse, CO | Roan Highlands, NC/TN | Sawtooth Ridge, WA | Ruby Crest, NV | Great Northern Traverse, MT | Sierra High Route, CA | Monroe Skyline, VT | Superstition Ridge, AZ | Guadalupe Ridge, NM/TX | Teton Crest Trail, WY | Greenstone Ridge, MI | Franconia Ridge, NH | Great Range, NY
Distance 8.9 miles
Gain 3,900 feet
Difficulty 6
Why it’s grand This 9-mile hike is among the best single-day samplers of the White Mountains, and a good warmup for the classic Presidential Traverse (backpacker.com/pres). You’ll tag three summits, cross alpine terrain, and pass three waterfalls as you traverse 1.7 miles of Franconia Ridge.
Do it From the Lafayette Place trailhead, ascend via the steep Falling Waters Trail, and come down via the Greenleaf and Old Bridle Trails. Weekdays are less busy.
Nineteenth-century logging in this area helped inspire the legislation that created the East’s national forests.
Contact (603) 536-6100; fs.usda .gov/whitemountain)
Season May to October
