Basin, The

The Basin is accessed from parking areas directly off of Interstate 93 north of Lincoln in Franconia Notch State Park. Northbound travelers will exit Interstate 93 six miles north of Lincoln, and southbound travelers will exit about 1.3 miles south of Lafayette Campground. Both exits are well signed. Trails lead from each individual parking area to the footbridge spanning the Pemigewasset River immediately below the upper section of the falls. Continuing along the broad path for about 500 feet will lead to the main viewpoint overlooking The Basin itself.The Basin is one of the premiere natural attractions in the White Mountains, and with easy access right off of Interstate 93 and a lack of admission fee like nearby Flume Gorge, the area sees a significant number of visitors daily (and can be downright crowded during the summer). While the name of the feature refers to a specific small waterfall which pours into a nearly perfectly round pool, there are actually several sections of waterfalls found along the Pemigewasset River which we have chosen to include with this entry.
At the upstream end of the formation, the river splits into two channels, and visitors hiking to The Basin will encounter the falls along the larger channel upon crossing a footbridge en route to the main viewpoint for The Basin. The falls cascade about 10 feet down a narrow trough immediately above the bridge, with the second and smaller channel of the splitting off just above. The second channel follows the trail to the main viewpoint in parallel as it heads downstream, and shortly reaches a fascinating waterslide formation where the stream swishes down a perfectly smooth chute in a curvy "L" shape. Shortly downstream from here another small cascade pours into a small pool which is particularly scenic during the fall foliage season.
This brings us to the main attraction. The main channel of the river below the aforementioned 10-foot cascading upper section of the falls makes a few more small tumbles, and then channels into a crack in the bedrock no more than 3 feet wide and plunges about 8 feet into a pool 30-feet in diameter, nearly perfectly round and undercutting the adjacent cliff by 10-15 feet. The angle at which the falls pour into the pool ensures a constant whirlpool motion which keeps eroding the rock at a slow but steady pace. Immediately below the falls is another interesting rock formation known as Old Man's Foot; here the river splits around a protruding rock which resembles the lower half of a leg, with the heel sticking out of the water. The reference to the Old Man is the same of that which inspired the naming of the profile rock (which has since collapsed) high up on nearby Cannon Mountain.