The Mad River is a
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...
in the
White Mountains of
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. It is a
tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...
of the
Pemigewasset River
The Pemigewasset River , known locally as "The Pemi", is a river in the state of New Hampshire, the United States. It is in length and (with its tributaries) drains approximately . The name "Pemigewasset" comes from the Abenaki word ''bemijijoase ...
, part of the
Merrimack River
The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an occasional earlier spelling) is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into M ...
watershed.
The Mad River begins at the Greeley Ponds in Mad River Notch, a
mountain pass between
Mount Osceola to the west and
Mount Kancamagus to the east, in the township of
Livermore. The river descends to the south, followed by the Greeley Pond Trail, to the town of
Waterville Valley, where the
West Branch West Branch may refer to:
Communities
* West Branch, Iowa, city in Cedar and Johnson counties
* West Branch, Michigan, city in Ogemaw County
* West Branch, New Brunswick, in the Local Service District of Weldford Parish
* West Branch River John, i ...
enters.
After winding through the
Waterville Valley Resort
Waterville Valley is a ski resort in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire, United States. It is located within the White Mountain National Forest. Built on Mount Tecumseh, with a summit elevation of above sea level, the ski trails extend to a high p ...
community, the Mad River proceeds southwest over continuous boulder-strewn rapids into a corner of the town of
Thornton, eventually settling out in Campton Pond in the town of
Campton.
Passing over a small hydroelectric dam at Campton Upper Village, the river descends over some small waterfalls and enters the
floodplain
A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...
of the Pemigewasset River, which it joins near
Interstate 93.
For most of the river's length below Waterville Valley, it is paralleled by
New Hampshire Route 49.
See also
*
List of rivers of New Hampshire
This is a list of rivers and significant streams in the U.S. state of New Hampshire.
All watercourses named "River" (freshwater or tidal) are listed here, as well as other streams which are either subject to thNew Hampshire Comprehensive Shorelan ...
References
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Tributaries of the Merrimack River
Rivers of New Hampshire
Rivers of Grafton County, New Hampshire