Kinsman Mountain is a
mountainImage:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
located in
Grafton CountyGrafton County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. As of the 2010 census, the population was 89,118. Its county seat is North Haverhill, which is a village within the town of Haverhill. Until 1972, the county courthouse and other offices were located in downtown Woodsville, a...
,
New HampshireNew Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
. The mountain is named after Nathan Kinsman, an early resident of
Easton, New HampshireEaston is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 254 at the 2010 census.- History :Formed from a part of Landaff known as Eastern Landaff, Easton was incorporated in 1876....
, and is part of the Kinsman Range of the
White MountainsThe 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. Part of the Appalachian Mountains, they are considered the most rugged mountains in New England...
. To the northeast, Kinsman is connected by
The Cannon BallsThe Cannon Balls is a mountain ridge located in Grafton County, New Hampshire. It is part of the Kinsman Range of the White Mountains. The ridge has three peaks with elevations of, from west to east, 3,693, 3,660, and 3,769 feet...
ridge to
Cannon MountainCannon Mountain is a peak in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Known for both its technical rock and ice climbing and its skiing , the mountain was home to the Old Man of the Mountain until the formation collapsed on May 3, 2003...
.
The west side of Kinsman drains into Reel and Slide Brooks, thence into the
Ham BranchThe Ham Branch of the Gale River is a 12.2 mile long river in northwestern New Hampshire in the United States. Via the Gale River, it is a tributary of the Ammonoosuc River and part of the Connecticut River watershed....
of the
Gale RiverThe Gale River is a 13.1 mile long tributary of the Ammonoosuc River in northwestern New Hampshire in the United States. Via the Ammonoosuc, it is part of the watershed of the Connecticut River, which flows to Long Island Sound....
, the Gale River,
Ammonoosuc RiverThe Ammonoosuc River is a river, 55 mi long, in northwestern New Hampshire in the United States. It is a tributary of the Connecticut River, which flows to Long Island Sound. "Ammonoosuc" is Abnaki for "small, narrow fishing place"....
,
Connecticut RiverThe Connecticut River is the largest and longest river in New England, and also an American Heritage River. It flows roughly south, starting from the Fourth Connecticut Lake in New Hampshire. After flowing through the remaining Connecticut Lakes and Lake Francis, it defines the border between the...
, and into
Long Island SoundLong Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...
in
ConnecticutConnecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
.
The east side drains into Cascade Brook, thence into the
Pemigewasset RiverThe Pemigewasset River , known locally as "The Pemi", is a river in the state of New Hampshire, the United States. It is in length and drains approximately...
, the
Merrimack RiverThe Merrimack River 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 Massachusetts, and then flows northeast until it empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Newburyport...
, and into the
Gulf of MaineThe Gulf of Maine is a large gulf of the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of North America.It is delineated by Cape Cod at the eastern tip of Massachusetts in the southwest and Cape Sable at the southern tip of Nova Scotia in the northeast. It includes the entire coastlines of the U.S...
in
MassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
.
The south face drains into Eliza Brook, thence into Harvard Brook, another
tributaryA tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
of the Pemigewasset.
The
Appalachian Mountain ClubThe Appalachian Mountain Club is one of the United States' oldest outdoor groups. Created in 1876 to explore and preserve the White Mountains in New Hampshire, it has expanded throughout the northeastern U.S., with 12 chapters stretching from Maine to Washington, D.C...
considers both North and South Kinsman to be "
four-thousand footersThe term Four-Thousand Footers refers to a group of forty-eight mountains in New Hampshire at least 4,000 feet above sea level...
" because the divide between them gives the former more than 200 ft (61 m) of
topographic prominenceIn topography, prominence, also known as autonomous height, relative height, shoulder drop , or prime factor , categorizes the height of the mountain's or hill's summit by the elevation between it and the lowest contour line encircling it and no higher summit...
.
South Kinsman is the sixth most prominent of the White Mountains, because it is the highest point between
Franconia NotchFranconia Notch is a major mountain pass through the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Dominated by Cannon Mountain, it lies principally within Franconia Notch State Park and is traversed by the Franconia Notch Parkway Franconia Notch (el. 1950 ft. / 590 m.) is a major mountain pass through...
and
Kinsman NotchKinsman Notch is a mountain pass located in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, United States. It is the westernmost of the major notches through the White Mountains...
.
Hikers climbing North Kinsman Mountain, when reaching the viewless summit, should be sure to take a short bushwhack east to steep granite ledges falling off to Kinsman Pond and offering views of
Cannon MountainCannon Mountain is a peak in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Known for both its technical rock and ice climbing and its skiing , the mountain was home to the Old Man of the Mountain until the formation collapsed on May 3, 2003...
, South Kinsman, Franconia Ridge, and
Lonesome LakeLonesome Lake is a water body located in Franconia Notch in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, south of Cannon Mountain. The lake is reachable by hiking trails from the Franconia Notch Parkway and features an Appalachian Mountain Club hut on its southwest shore.The lake lies in the Merrimack...
.
External links