Merrymeeting Lake

Merrymeeting Lake

Location	Strafford County, New Hampshire
Coordinates	43°29′25″N 71°9′19″W / 43.49028°N 71.15528°W / 43.49028; -71.15528Coordinates: 43°29′25″N 71°9′19″W / 43.49028°N 71.15528°W / 43.49028; -71.15528
Primary outflows	Merrymeeting River
Basin countries	United States

Max. length	3.1 mi (5.0 km)
Max. width	1.3 mi (2.1 km)
Surface area	1,233 acres (4.99 km²)
Average depth	29 ft (8.8 m)
Max. depth	120 ft (37 m)
Surface elevation	647 ft (197 m)

Settlements	New Durham

Merrymeeting Lake is a 1,233-acre (4.99 km²)^[1] water body located in Strafford County in eastern New Hampshire, United States, in the town of New Durham. Its outlet is the Merrymeeting River, flowing south and then northwest to Lake Winnipesaukee.

The shores of Merrymeeting Lake are moderately to heavily developed. The lake has a busy recreational character rather than a wilderness character. Only a few small segments of shoreline remain undeveloped. The undeveloped areas are the western side of Sawtooth Cove, because the land is extremely steep there and difficult to build on, and the far eastern shore of the lake which is not easily accessible by road.

In the 1980s, most buildings along the lake were simple summer camps. During the 1990s, most of these structures were replaced by higher end summer homes, some worth millions of dollars. The town of New Durham maintains two paved roads, North Shore Road and South Shore Road, which almost encircle the lake, allowing for year-round residence. However, the winter population is small. Most properties on the lake are second homes for affluent families.

There is a dam at the west end of the lake, which is used to control the lake's water level. Each year in the fall the water level in the lake is lowered via the dam. Water level is restored to its normal level in the spring by snow melt and rainfall. The Powder Mill Fish Hatchery is located at the base of the dam, and is fed by the overflow of the lake's water.^[2]

Merrymeeting Lake has common loons which nest on the western shore. Ducks also live on the lake, although feeding them is discouraged by the Merrymeeting Lake Association. The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department stocks the lake for recreational fishing. The lake is classified as a cold- and warmwater fishery, with observed species including rainbow trout, landlocked salmon, lake trout, smallmouth bass, chain pickerel, and horned pout.^[3]

References

↑ New Hampshire GRANIT database Archived 2013-08-03 at the Wayback Machine.
↑ http://www.wildlife.state.nh.us/Wildlife/WMAs/WMA_Merrymeeting_Marsh.htm
↑ "Merrymeeting Lake, New Durham" (PDF). NH Fish & Game. Retrieved September 3, 2014.

Merrimack River watershed
Tributaries	Artichoke River Assabet River Baboosic Brook Back River Baker River Bear Brook Beards Brook Beaver Brook Beebe River Big River Black Brook Blackwater River Cochichewick River Cockermouth River Cohas Brook Concord River Contoocook River East Branch Baker River East Branch Pemigewasset River Fowler River Frazier Brook Gridley River Gunstock River Lane River Little Massabesic Brook-Sucker Brook Little River (Barnstead) Little River (Haverhill) Little Suncook River Lost River Mad River Melvin River Merrymeeting River Middle Branch Piscataquog River Nashua River Newfound River Nissitissit River North Branch Contoocook River North Fork East Branch Pemigewasset River North Nashua River Nubanusit Brook Pemigewasset River Phillips Brook Piscataquog River Powwow River Purgatory Brook Quinapoxet River Red Hill River Salmon Brook Shawsheen River Shedd Brook Smith River Soucook River Souhegan River South Branch Baker River South Branch Piscataquog River South Branch Souhegan River South Nashua River Spicket River Squam River Squannacook River Stillwater River Stony Brook Sudbury River Suncook River Tioga River Trout Brook Turkey River Vine Brook Warner River West Branch Mad River West Branch Souhegan River West Branch Warner River Whitman River Winnipesaukee River
Lakes	Arlington Mill Reservoir Lake Attitash Ayers Island Reservoir Baboosic Lake Lake Boon Canobie Lake Cobbetts Pond Lake Cochichewick Lake Cochituate Contoocook Lake Country Pond Crystal Lake (Gilmanton) Crystal Lake (Manchester) Deering Reservoir Franklin Pierce Lake Great Pond Haggetts Pond Halfmoon Lake Harrisville Pond Highland Lake Hopkins Pond (Adder Pond) Island Pond (Derry) Island Pond (Stoddard) Jenness Pond Lake Kanasatka Little Squam Lake Locke Lake Lonesome Lake Lost Lake Massabesic Lake Lake Massasecum Merrymeeting Lake Mirror Lake Newfound Lake Northwood Lake Nubanusit Lake Opechee Bay Paugus Bay Pemigewasset Lake Penacook Lake Pleasant Lake (Deerfield) Pleasant Lake (New London) Potanipo Pond Powder Mill Pond Powwow Pond Profile Lake Lake Saltonstall Sebbins Pond Silver Lake (Hollis) Skatutakee Lake Lake Solitude Squam Lake Stinson Lake Suncook Lakes Sunset Lake Thorndike Pond Turkey Ponds Tuxbury Pond Wachusett Reservoir Walden Pond Lake Waukewan Weare Reservoir Webster Lake Lake Wentworth White Oak Pond Wickwas Lake Willard Pond Lake Winnipesaukee Winnisquam Lake
Towns	Acton Allenstown Amesbury Amherst Andover Ashland MA Ashland NH Atkinson Bedford MA Bedford NH Belmont Billerica Boscawen Bow Bridgewater Bristol Burlington Campton Canterbury Chelmsford Clinton Concord MA Concord NH Derry Dracut Fitchburg Framingham Franklin Gilford Goffstown Groton Groveland Hampstead Haverhill Hill Hillsborough Holderness Hollis Hooksett Hopkinton MA Hopkinton NH Hudson MA Hudson NH Kingston Laconia Lawrence Leominster Lexington Lincoln Litchfield Londonderry Lowell Lunenburg Manchester Marlborough Maynard Meredith Merrimac Merrimack Methuen Milford Nashua New Hampton Newburyport North Andover Northborough Northfield Pelham Pembroke Penacook Pepperell Peterborough Plaistow Plymouth Salem Salisbury Sanbornton Sudbury Suncook Tewksbury Thornton Tilton Tyngsborough Weare West Newbury Westborough Westford Windham Wolfeboro Woodstock
Landmarks	Amoskeag Falls Bear Brook State Park Belknap Mountains Blackwater Dam Egg Rock Franconia Notch State Park Franklin Falls Dam Gunstock Mountain Hannah Duston Memorial Hobo Railroad Lakes Region Lost River Reservation Middlesex Canal Minute Man National Historical Park Mount Major Mount Monadnock Mount Rowe Pawtucket Falls Pemigewasset Wilderness Sculptured Rocks Natural Area Wellington State Park White Mountains

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Merrymeeting Lake

See also

References