Lincoln, New Hampshire fall foliage

Lincoln sits at the western end of the Kancamagus Highway, where the road leaves the Pemigewasset River valley and climbs into the White Mountain National Forest. A few miles east of town, the Lincoln Woods Trailhead has a suspension bridge over the East Branch of the Pemigewasset River and a flat trail along the river. Farther east, the road climbs a long hairpin turn toward Kancamagus Pass at about 2,855 feet, and the Hancock and Pemigewasset overlooks along the way look out over layers of forested mountains. Because the pass is so much higher than town, color there often runs ahead of the valley. Franconia Notch is also just north of Lincoln on I-93.

The Kancamagus Highway (Route 112) runs 34.5 miles east from Lincoln to Conway and is one of New England’s best-known foliage drives. Heading east, the main stops are the Hancock, Pemigewasset, C.L. Graham Wangan, and Sugar Hill overlooks near the pass; Sabbaday Falls, a short walk to a waterfall in a narrow gorge; Rocky Gorge and Lower Falls on the Swift River; and the Albany Covered Bridge near the Conway end. The drive takes about an hour without stops.