Visitor center · Franconia Notch State Park
Tickets, park info, food and exhibits at the Flume entrance.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Franconia Notch Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Franconia Notch State Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Franconia Notch audio tourRecorded for this place
Flume Gorge and the Full Loop“You're coming up on the entrance to Flume Gorge, where boardwalks take you between high granite walls beside rushing water. I'd stop if you have about an hour and a half to two hours for the full two-mile circuit.”
Plays as you drive up to Gilman Visitor Center in the Parkwolf Franconia Notch Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Gilman Visitor Center is Franconia Notch’s information and interpretive center beside the entrance to Flume Gorge. You can use the center without a Flume trail ticket; stop for the information desk, cafeteria or gift shop, or make it your starting point for the walk.
The self-guided gorge route is about two miles and takes roughly 1.5 hours. Expect packed gravel, boardwalk, moderate uphill stretches and stairs; the route begins around the building. The gorge trail itself is not wheelchair accessible.
The building combines the ticket office and information desk with a cafeteria, gift shop, public restrooms and a small auditorium. History displays give you a reason to look around instead of treating it only as a ticket stop.
The Flume is a natural granite gorge at the base of Mount Liberty, discovered in 1808. It extends about 800 feet, with walls rising as high as 90 feet. The visitor center sits at its entrance, while the ticketed walk explores the gorge itself.
Wildlife
66 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
38 sightingsMooseMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
19 sightingsWild TurkeyMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
19 sightingsGreat Blue HeronMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
13 sightingsTurkey VultureMost seen around noonSighting map
23 sightingsRavenMost seen around 11 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Franconia Notch. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateMount Pemigewasset Trail3.3 mi · 2.8 hr · At the trailheadA steady forest climb to an open granite summit above the Notch.
ModerateFlume Gorge Trail2 mi · 1.8 hr · 0.1 mi awayA two-mile loop through a granite gorge, waterfalls, and a glacial pool.
ChallengingFranconia Ridge Traverse16.7 mi · 12 hr · 0.1 mi awayFour 4,000-footers, a long day, and miles of exposed ridge.
EasyRoaring River Memorial Nature Trail0.3 mi · 30 min · 0.1 mi awayA short woodland loop with a 1988 memorial gazebo.
ChallengingMount Liberty via Liberty Spring Trail7.5 mi · 6.5 hr · 0.3 mi awaySteep climb, big summit views, and Mount Flume’s slides.
ModerateCascade Brook Trail6.7 mi · 4.5 hr · 0.3 mi awayA brookside climb ends at Lonesome Lake beside an AMC hut.
ChallengingMount Liberty and Mount Flume via Liberty Spring Trail10.2 mi · 8 hr · 0.3 mi awayTwo rugged summits, a rocky ridge traverse, and broad mountain views.
ModerateIndian Head Trail3.8 mi · 3 hr · 1.1 mi awayA rocky climb to open summit ledges with broad views.
Sight · 0.6 mi awayFlume GorgeFollow a brook through an 800-foot granite gorge and two bridges.
Sight · 1 mi awayMount PemigewassetBroad ledges turn a steady climb into a Franconia Notch view.
Sight · 1.7 mi awayThe BasinA river-carved granite bowl and waterfall, reached by a short paved walk.
Sight · 1.8 mi awayKinsman FallsA narrow cleft sends Cascade Brook into a dark plunge pool.
Sight · 2.1 mi awayRocky Glen FallsA stepped gorge waterfall worth the uphill finish.
Campground · 2.2 mi awayLiberty Springs TentsiteA useful backpacking stop just below the Franconia Ridge junction.Sight · 2.3 mi awayMount LibertyA long climb earns a rocky summit and wide Franconia Ridge views.
Sight · 2.7 mi awayMount FlumeA hard climb opens onto Franconia Ridge and the Kinsmans.Parkwolf’s Franconia Notch ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
