Umbagog Lake is a wilderness lake located in
Coös County, New Hampshire
Coös County (, with two syllables) or Coos County is the northernmost County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 31,268, making it the least-populated ...
, and
Oxford County, Maine. It is one of the most pristine lakes in the 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 lies in the towns of
Errol, New Hampshire, and
Upton, Maine, as well as the townships of
Cambridge, New Hampshire, and
Magalloway, Maine. The name ''Umbagog'' is properly pronounced with the stress on the second syllable (um-BAY-gog) and is said to come from the
Abenaki
The Abenaki ( Abenaki: ''Wαpánahki'') are Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands of Canada and the United States. They are an Algonquian-speaking people and part of the Wabanaki Confederacy. The Eastern Abenaki language was pred ...
word for "shallow water". Both "Lake Umbagog" and "Umbagog Lake" are commonly used and accepted when referring to the body of water.
Geography
The lake is part of the
Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge and
Umbagog Lake State Park. Along its southernmost shore, there is a public
campground
Campsite, campground, and camping pitch are all related terms regarding a place used for camping (an overnight stay in an outdoor area). The usage differs between British English and American English.
In British English, a ''campsite'' is an ...
and a public boat launch ramp which may be accessed from
New Hampshire Route 26. There are 33 wilderness campsites, accessible only by boat, which are located around the lake. Two other boat launches are closer to the center of Errol: one is accessible from North Mountain Pond Road off
New Hampshire Route 26 as one leaves east of Errol, while another can be found along
New Hampshire Route 16
New Hampshire Route 16 (NH 16) is a , north–south State highway#United States, state highway in New Hampshire, United States, the main road connecting the Seacoast Region (New Hampshire), Seacoast region to the Lakes Region (New Hampshire), L ...
northeast of Errol, within the national wildlife refuge. An interesting feature along its northwest shore is an expansive natural
floating island
A floating island is a mass of floating aquatic plants, mud, and peat ranging in thickness from several centimeters to a few meters. Sometimes referred to as ''tussocks'', ''floatons'', or ''suds'', floating islands are found in many parts of t ...
composed of generations of decomposing marshland vegetation. The area is abundant with wildlife, including
coyote
The coyote (''Canis latrans''), also known as the American jackal, prairie wolf, or brush wolf, is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the Wolf, gray wolf, and slightly smaller than the c ...
,
wild turkey
The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland game bird native to North America, one of two extant species of Turkey (bird), turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey (''M. g. dom ...
,
bald eagle
The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...
,
osprey
The osprey (; ''Pandion haliaetus''), historically known as sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and a wingspan of . It ...
,
bobcat
The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the wildcat, bay lynx, or red lynx, is one of the four extant species within the medium-sized wild cat genus '' Lynx''. Native to North America, it ranges from southern Canada through most of the c ...
,
moose
The moose (: 'moose'; used in North America) or elk (: 'elk' or 'elks'; used in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is the world's tallest, largest and heaviest extant species of deer and the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is also the tal ...
,
rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also includes the hares), which is in the order Lagomorpha (which also includes pikas). They are familiar throughout the world as a small herbivore, a prey animal, a domesticated ...
,
bear
Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae (). They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats ...
,
loons and many other native species.
The lake runs almost north to south. Its surface area is ,
making it the largest lake along the Maine/New Hampshire border. Its average depth is , and its maximum depth is .
[ The lake's area and depth were markedly increased with the construction of a dam at Errol in the 19th century.
Umbagog Lake is fed by the Magalloway River, the Rapid River, and the Dead Cambridge River. It is the source of the ]Androscoggin River
The Androscoggin River (Abenaki: ''Ammoscongon'') is a river in the U.S. states of Maine and New Hampshire, in northern New England. It is U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data''The National Map'', a ...
.
The lake is classified as a warmwater fishery, with observed species including smallmouth bass
The smallmouth bass (''Micropterus dolomieu'') is a species of freshwater fish in the Centrarchidae, sunfish family (biology), family (Centrarchidae) of the order (biology), order Centrarchiformes. It is the type species of its genus ''Micropterus ...
, chain pickerel
The chain pickerel (''Esox niger'') is a species of freshwater fish in the pike family (biology), family (family Esocidae) of order (biology), order Esociformes. The chain pickerel and the American pickerel (''E. americanus'') belong to the ''Esox ...
, horned pout, and northern pike
The northern pike (''Esox lucius'') is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus ''Esox'' (pikes). They are commonly found in brackish water, moderately salty and fresh waters of the Northern Hemisphere (''i.e.'' holarctic in distribution). T ...
.
Notable residents
* Metallak, Androscoggin elder
See also
* List of lakes in Maine
* List of lakes in New Hampshire
References
External links
*
{{authority control
Lakes of Coös County, New Hampshire
Lakes of Oxford County, Maine
North Maine Woods
Northern Forest Canoe Trail
Lakes of Maine
Lakes of New Hampshire
Maine placenames of Native American origin
New Hampshire placenames of Native American origin