Crawford Notch's marquee hike to New Hampshire's grandest single drop, on a brook that rides the White Mountains melt and rewards a spring visit.
Mid April through June
Big water window
in a typical year
Snowmelt
What drives it
Bemis Brook
Live USGS
Data on this page
gauge 010642505
NH State Parks
Managed by
their rules govern
Trail status, closures and safety rules belong to each falls' managing agency, named and linked on every page.
The season
What fills Arethusa Falls, and when
Bemis Brook drains high Crawford Notch country, so Arethusa peaks from mid April through June and slims by late summer; winter turns it into a renowned ice climb. New Hampshire State Parks' page frames the notch's waterfalls collectively, and the often cited 200 foot height figure is not on the agency's current page.
Typical best flow: Mid April through June
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What the agency itself says
Crawford Notch State Park has 5,775 acres providing access to numerous hiking trails, waterfalls, fishing, wildlife viewing, and spectacular mountain views.
Crawford Notch State Park (New Hampshire State Parks)What a snowmelt year looks like at full send: Palouse Falls in mid April, when the Palouse River is still carrying the melt. The same falls in late August is a ribbon. Timing is most of the visit. “04-15-14-palouse” — Dsdugan — CC0
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Right now
What Bemis Brook is doing today
Flow at the gauge now
Loading
USGS median for Oct 15
Not published
Gauge: USGS 010642505 Saco River at River Street at Bartlett NH, on the receiving Saco River downstream of the notch, a basin-level proxy. The gauge reads the river, not the brink of the falls, so treat it as the trend line rather than a turnstile.
Source: USGS Water Services (National Water Information System). Instantaneous values and daily statistics services. U.S. Geological Survey data are works of the United States Government and are in the public domain. Gauge verified 2026-08-27.
The other half of the story: the same Palouse Falls in late August. Nothing is wrong; this is what a snowmelt river does every year once the melt is spent. “Palouse Falls 20100829” by Mark Wagner, CC BY-SA 2.5
Getting there
Access, in the agency's words and ours
The trail from the Arethusa Falls parking area climbs steadily about 1.5 miles to the falls, within Crawford Notch State Park's 5,775 acres of trails, falls and views, per the park.
High-country melt over a big wall (Lower Falls of the Yellowstone, NPS photo). Arethusa is the White Mountains' version, best while Crawford Notch sheds its snow. “Afternoon fall light on Lower Falls from Lookout Point (54937071695)” — YellowstoneNPS — Public domain
Common questions
Arethusa Falls flow season FAQ
The reliable big-water window is Mid April through June. Bemis Brook drains high Crawford Notch country, so Arethusa peaks from mid April through June and slims by late summer; winter turns it into a renowned ice climb. New Hampshire State Parks' page frames the notch's waterfalls collectively, and the often cited 200 foot height figure is not on the agency's current page.
This page reads the USGS gauge on Bemis Brook (Saco River at River Street at Bartlett NH, on the receiving Saco River downstream of the notch, a basin-level proxy) live in your browser, and shows the latest flow next to the median USGS publishes for today's date, so you can see where today sits in the year. The gauge reads the river, not the brink, so treat it as the trend rather than a turnstile.
It narrows markedly in dry late summer, though the cliff amphitheater carries the visit; spring melt is the full-curtain season and the classic photograph.
Crawford Notch State Park (New Hampshire State Parks). The trail from the Arethusa Falls parking area climbs steadily about 1.5 miles to the falls, within Crawford Notch State Park's 5,775 acres of trails, falls and views, per the park. Trail status, closures and safety rules are theirs, and their page is linked on this one; nothing here overrides what they publish.
Yosemite Falls in May, running on snowmelt that will be gone by late summer. The National Park Service tells visitors the falls can be dry by August, which is why every falls page here starts from its watershed. “Tourists below Yosemite Falls (39832011431)” by Mike McBey, CC BY 2.0
Keep planning
More falls, and the rest of the New Hampshire year
Flow windows are typical-year climatology drawn from the driver and the agency language quoted above, not forecasts. Live readings and per-date percentiles are U.S. Geological Survey data, public domain; the above-or-below-typical line is our comparison and is labelled as such. Access, trail and safety information belongs to Crawford Notch State Park (New Hampshire State Parks). National picture: waterfall season across the US → Hero image: “Afternoon fall light on Lower Falls from Lookout Point (54937071695)” — YellowstoneNPS — Public domain
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