Upper Winnipesaukee River

The “upper Winni” flows between Rt. 140 and the Clement Dam, just downstream of downtown Tilton. It is a perfect beginner, or white water training run that due to required minimum flows is generally
passable year round. Starting out as flatwater/quickwater; class I rapids begin just after passing under Rt. 93 and continue off and on until the railroad trestle just above Salmon Run Conservation area where
the difficulty increases to Class II passing under the trestle, and continuing past the former Granite Mill dam site to the next trestle just upstream of the Tilton Island. For over a decade, this section between

The 2 railroad trestles has hosted the annual Winni Slalom race which is part of New England Slalom Series. The river then turns back to class I passing on either side of the the Tilton Island and then
proceeds through downtown Tilton. This section ends in the pond at Clement Dam with take out access on either side of the river. River left Northfield in Surrette Battery park just beyond the
train station. In Tilton (river right) there is a boat ramp at Riverfront Park, due to the long, long portage around the Clement dam, few paddlers continue beyond this point, but for those wishing
to continue, the portage around Clement dam is on the Tilton side (river right). Note the difficulty of this river depends on the flow. It is passable at minimum flow 250 CFS (cubic feet per second) but
has a lot of rocks and will likely require some scrapping. At medium flows of 500-1,000 CFS there are good spots for practicing eddy turns, and surfing. As flows increase up to maximum of 2,000
CFS, the class I sections tend to wash out; the class two section can have big waves, pushy currents and complicated eddy lines. Check the level before you paddle!

More information about paddling this section can be found here
▪ https://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/River/view/river-detail/3570/main

Current flows are available from the USGS gauge in Tilton. Make sure to check for Data in CFS
rather than gauge level.
▪ https://waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/USGS-01081000/

Fishing is popular along all sections of the Winnipesaukee River from Laconia to Franklin. The Winnipesaukee River Trail provides easy fishing access to
miles of river. The Tilton/Northfield section is stocked with Rainbow, Brook or Brown Trout once or twice a year by the NH Department of
Fish and Game. It is also a popular spot for bass fishing.