The Franconia Range is a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

located in the White Mountains of the

U.S. The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

state of

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. It is the second-highest range of peaks (after the

Presidential Range The Presidential Range is a mountain range located in the White Mountains of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. It contains the highest peaks of the Whites, the most notable of which are named for American presidents, followed by prominent ...

) in the White Mountains. Franconia Ridge is a prominent

ridge A ridge is a long, narrow, elevated geomorphologic landform, structural feature, or a combination of both separated from the surrounding terrain by steep sides. The sides of a ridge slope away from a narrow top, the crest or ridgecrest, wi ...

which forms the backbone of the range, stringing together all of its major summits.

Summits

From north to south, the highest

summits A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used only for ...

of the range include: *

Mount Lafayette Mount Lafayette is a mountain at the northern end of the Franconia Range in the White Mountains (New Hampshire), White Mountains of New Hampshire, United States. It lies in the town of Franconia, New Hampshire, Franconia in Grafton County, New ...

* * Mount Truman *

Mount Lincoln Mount Lincoln may refer to one of various mountains located in the United States: {{Mountainindex, Lincoln ...

* * Little Haystack Mountain * Mount Liberty * *

Mount Flume Mount Flume is a mountain at the southern end of the Franconia Range in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, United States. Mount Flume is the lowest in elevation of the peaks in the Franconia Range that are accessible by official hiking trai ...

* The summits marked with an asterisk (*) are included on the

Appalachian Mountain Club Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) is the oldest outdoor group in the United States. Created in 1876 to explore and preserve the White Mountains (New Hampshire), White Mountains in New Hampshire, it has expanded throughout the northeastern U.S., wit ...

peak-bagging Peak bagging or hill bagging is an activity in which Hiking, hikers, climbing, climbers, and Mountaineering, mountaineers attempt to reach a collection of summits, published in the form of a list. This activity has been popularized around the world ...

list of "

Four-thousand footers The Four-thousand footers (sometimes abbreviated 4ks) are a group of forty-eight mountains in New Hampshire at least above sea level. To qualify for inclusion a peak must also meet the more technical criterion of topographic prominence important ...

" in New Hampshire.

Features

The Franconia Range hosts the third largest connected area of

alpine tundra Alpine tundra is a type of natural region or biome that does not contain trees because it is at high elevation, with an associated harsh climate. As the latitude of a location approaches the poles, the threshold elevation for alpine tundra gets ...

in the United States east of the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in great-circle distance, straight-line distance from the northernmost part of Western Can ...

, only surpassed by the

and the Katahdin

massif A massif () is a principal mountain mass, such as a compact portion of a mountain range, containing one or more summits (e.g. France's Massif Central). In mountaineering literature, ''massif'' is frequently used to denote the main mass of an ...

. Approximately along the crest of the ridge is in the

alpine zone Alpine tundra is a type of natural region or biome that does not contain trees because it is at high elevation, with an associated alpine climate, harsh climate. As the latitude of a location approaches the poles, the threshold elevation for alp ...

. This area runs from the

treeline The tree line is the edge of a habitat at which trees are capable of growing and beyond which they are not. It is found at high elevations and high latitudes. Beyond the tree line, trees cannot tolerate the environmental conditions (usually low ...

just below the summit of Little Haystack all the way to the treeline north of Mount Lafayette, and affords constant 360-degree views of the White Mountains. To the east of the ridge lies the rugged and uninhabited

Pemigewasset Wilderness The Pemigewasset Wilderness is a federally designated Wilderness Area in the heart of New Hampshire's White Mountains. It is a part of the White Mountain National Forest. It is New Hampshire's largest wilderness area. The Wilderness Area cons ...

. Mount Liberty and Mount Flume are almost entirely

forest A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense ecological community, community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, ...

ed; their summits rise just above the treeline, providing views of the area.

Hiking

The Franconia Ridge Trail, which coincides with the

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail, also called the A.T., is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tra ...

from Mount Lafayette to Mount Liberty, traverses the ridge over all the aforementioned mountains. Hikers fog franconia ridge

One hike on the ridge is an 8.9-mile (14.3-km) loop involving the Falling Waters Trail, the Franconia Ridge Trail, the Greenleaf Trail, and the Old Bridle Path, which includes the majority of the above-treeline portion of the ridge. Known as the Franconia Ridge Loop or Franconia Ridge Traverse, the loop is strenuous, with a cumulative gain of over , and traverses the rocky cones of Little Haystack Mountain, Mount Lincoln, and Mount Lafayette. The northern portion of the loop also passes the Greenleaf Hut, one of the

High Huts of the White Mountains The High Huts of the White Mountains are eight mountain huts in the White Mountains (New Hampshire), White Mountains of New Hampshire, owned and maintained by the Appalachian Mountain Club. They are modeled after similar huts in the Alps and posi ...

Dangers

The exposed nature of the ridge and the changeable weather of the White Mountains make it a more dangerous hike than it may appear. Injuries and even fatalities from falls and exposure are not uncommon.Union-Leader: "The Last Traverse" review
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References

External links