Gauge Description:

There is a hand painted gage on the upstream river left abutment of the Whittier bridge at the takeout. Shown below is a rough correlation between this gage and the USGS gage.

        Rough Correlation between two gauges on Bearcamp River (NH).


 Automatic    Painted
 Gauge:       Gauge:


  S.Tamworth    Whittier
|-----------|-----------------|-------------------------------------------


|-----------|-----------------|-------------------------------------------
  4.8           .5              Very low
|-----------|-----------------|-------------------------------------------
  5.1           .7
|-----------|-----------------|-------------------------------------------


|-----------|-----------------|-------------------------------------------
  6.0           2.0             High
|-----------|-----------------|-------------------------------------------
  8.2           4.5             Very high
|-----------|-----------------|-------------------------------------------

Note: As of Spring 2008 there appears to be a problem with the USGS gage. The external visual gage appears to be reading correctly while the internal electronic gage reads 0.5 feet lower then the external one. Until this is confirmed or corrected paddlers should subject 0.5 feet from internet gage readings when determining river boatability.

 

Addendum: As of August 2008, the internal and external gages appear to be working correctly.

The Bearcamp drains the southeastern slopes of the White Mountains. It is best run in April through early May.

Gauge correlations for the  Bearcamp River Tamworth NH Date Time Visual gauge at take out bridge Bearcamp USGS USGS CFS Bearcamp river level Interpretation 5/14/02 4:00 pm 1.3' 5.67 FS* 753 cfs medium 8/10/03 1:00 pm 3.0' 7.48 FS* 2920 cfs High  8/11/03 1:00 pm 1.2' 5.71 FR* 787 cfs medium *RR=rising rapidly  RS=rising slowly  S=steady  FR=falling rapidly  FS=falling slowly

 

�River Flow information
Gauge: USGS (Tamworth) Suggested Minimum level: 4.8� / 250cfs
Low: 5.0�/ 325 cfs	Medium: 5.6�/750cfs	High: 6.6�/1500cfs
Waterline: 1-800-452-1737 site code: 335113

 

BEAR CAMP R NR TAMWORTH, NH [ NH ]

Current Conditions Stage Flow Updated 4.13 81 10/10 15:00 Station Graphs

Linked Reaches

Search Results

Level Legend:

Running

Below Minimum Recommended Flow

Above Maximum Recommended Flow

Unknown

Descriptions of reaches with River Name in bold have been verified by a regional StreamTeam member.

State	River Name/Section	Class	Level	Rel. Level	Updated
NH	Bearcamp— Bennett Corner to Whittier	II-IV	4.13 ft	low	10/10 15:00
NH	Wonalancet— Route 113A to Tamworth	III	4.13 ft	low	10/10 15:00

Station Description

AW Gauge ID:	50
USGS Station:	01064801
HUC:	01060002
Latitude:	43.8300
Longitude:	-71.2883
Class:	-1

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Bennett (Class III, Mile 0.4)
The first rapid you will approach after a relatively long stretch of quickwater. This rapid is pretty straightforward but drops several feet over its 50 yard length.

Cold Brook Rapid (Class III+, Mile 1.3)
Once you loose sight of NH route 25 on your right you will approach Cold Brook rapid. Cold Brook is one of the longer and more complicated rapids of the Bearcamp. You can recognize it by the Mill Brook road bridge visable downstream from the top of the rapid. The first portion of the rapid should not prove to be difficult. Eddy out on river right just a short way downstream from the start and check out Cold Brook as it comes in from river right. Continue through the rapid and eddy out river left downstream from the bridge. Below the bridge is the most difficult section of the rapid. Snake your way or punch through several very wide stickey holes then plunge through the bottom hole. The very last ledge drop is seperated midstream by a high point in the ledge, going to the right of the seperator will drop you into a fairly shollow hole/wave. The best route is to the left of the seperator into a large (but easily punched) hole.

Bearcamp Gorge (Class IV, Mile 1.5)
Just downstream of Cold Brook rapids the river seperates around an island. Take out at the head of the island and scout the Gorge. The gorge is 75 yards long and starts with a large breaking wave/hole. More turbulance follows around a sweeping right hand turn. Catch the eddy river right just after the right sweep and before the left sweep of the river. Gorge Exit Falls is just downstream. Old guide books claimed this drop was only 2' to 3' high but as the downstream dam has been washing out over the years the drop has increased significantly. It now is in the range of 5' to 6' depending on water levels and dam debris. From the eddy power out to the current and paddle hard towards just left of river center of the drop. You will then drop through a powerfull hole at the bottom that will upset and ender almost any boaters punching through. The river tries to push upsidedown boaters towards the rock ledge on river right, sometimes making a roll difficult. Should you choose not to take on Gorge Exit Falls take the river left channel around the island. This route is very shallow at low water but much easier than the gorge.

Bearcamp Dam (Class IV, Mile 1.7)
Just downstream from the gorge lies Bearcamp dam. This dam is slated to be removed by the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services sometime in the near future. For now there are two routes through the dam. The far left route has the most dramatic drop. It runs through one of the concrete sluices in the dam. But be carefull not to flip here because there is much rebarr and concrete in the runout below. A far esier and safer alternative is the far right break in the dam. Hug river right and carefully sneak up to the drop to check for debris in the channel. The drop is about 3' to 4' into a pool. No matter which route you choose make sure you scout before you run, these channels are very narrow and tend to collect a lot of debris.

USGS (Class III, Mile 2.4)
Good drop amoungst ledges and holes just upstream of the USGS river flow gage.

Ossipee Surf (Class II+, Mile 2.6)
This is a rather long section of river that has lots of surf and play spots along the way caused by a series of low ledges. As the river takes a sharp left away from NH 25 the river drops into that largest and most powerful hole in this section. This hole can be very stickey depending on levels. Usually only the best boater will attempt. You can skirt the hole on the left. Further downstream for the next .5 miles you will encounter a series of easier holes better suited for most boaters.

Whittier (Class III, Mile 3.3)
The last major rapid on the Bearcamp. Takeout shortly downstream at the 113 bridge.