Gauge Description:

Note: The gauge refered to in this section is a virtual "regional" gauge. It is in a nearby watershed but the proximity of the gauge and the river characteristics are similar. These gauges work best in the spring or wide area rain events. Do not rely on this gauge for localized rain events such as summertime thunderstorm activity. Current minimum run level for this stretch is still to be verified. There is a USGS gage located 20 miles downstream in Conway use it only if there is a consistant snowmelt runoff. Another indicator would be if that gauge is reading greater than 1500 cfs and rising, there could be water in the upper section. Do not bother if the gauge is dropping unless the water is very high. There is a hand painted gauge at the takeout river right on the down side of the bridge. Note: there is a new gage painted on the center abutement of the bridge but all data guide information (including this format) has been acquired from the old paddlers gauge on river right.

Minimum....... .7
Scratchy......<1.0
Low...........<1.5
Low to medium.<1.9
Medium........<2.8
Mdium high....<3.5
High..........>3.8

The Saco drains the southern portions of the Presidential Mountains of NH. This area is the highest terrain in the northeastern US. It is also the snowiest region in the eastern US. Snowmelt usually fills the Saco late in April and into May. During snowy winters the runoff can be consistant from mid April through late May.
Estimated chance (%) of finding the river runnable.

Month............% chance....comment
January .............0%....Frozen
February.............0%....Frozen
March...............10%....Usually frozen.
April...............65%....Most dependable month
May ................40%....especially early in month.                
June................20%
July.................5%      
August...............5%
September...........15%....Tropical storms and their remains
October.............20%....Trees go dormant less water being absorbed by them
November............30%      
December............25%....River starts freezing up early in month.

Be aware this is averaged out over several years. The % chance refers to the probability of finding the river running on any given day. For instance a 5% probability for July means on average you can only expect 1.5 days of water. One year there could be 3 days in July with water other years none. Spring levels are usually higher than fall levels.

Gauge correlations for the  Saco River Bartlett NH Date Time Visual gauge at take out bridge Ellis USGS USGS CFS Saco river level Interpretation 6/13/02 11:30 pm .9' 1.97 FR* 103 cfs Low 3/30/03 7:30 am 3.0'  2.26 FR* 154 cfs Medium *RR=rising rapidly  RS=rising slowly  S=steady  FR=falling rapidly  FS=falling slowly

ELLIS RIVER NEAR JACKSON, NH [ NH ]

Current Conditions Stage Flow Updated 10/1 8:15

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	Ellis— Route 16 to Jackson Golf Course	III-IV	cfs		10/1 8:15
NH	Saco— Crawford Notch to Bartlett (along Hwy 302)	III-IV	Feet		10/1 8:15

Station Description

AW Gauge ID:	6634
USGS Station:	01064300
HUC:
Latitude:
Longitude:
Class:

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Rowans (Class III, Mile 0.2)
Shortly below the gorge is a series of short but intense drops one after another. Most are short less than 50 yards long but blend together in a long complicated rapid in high water. The rapids become a little easier after the first railroad bridge crossing.

Sawyer Rock (Class III, Mile 1.7)
Fairly straighforward but look out for ledge hole at the bottom that can have a rather strong backwash. The rapid can be identified by a smooth ledge rock (Sawyer's) on river right as the river turns to the left. The boulder strewn drop above Sawyer's rock requires a little skill to navigate. This is a popular swimming hole in the summer.

Tweedledum Tweedledee (Class III+, Mile 1.8)
Shortly after Sawyer's Rock rapid comes the biggest drop on this portion of the Saco. The river splits around a mid stream island the right channel is usually not passible except under high water conditions. The left channel drops steeply and contains much turbulance amoung the waves and holes. The best route is just right of center skirting the largest holes on river left formed by the Tweedledum and Tweedledee boulders.

Scouting Group

Photo of Vicky, Buffer, Steve, and Terry at Tweedledum Tweedledee by Kate Hartland taken 5/12/07 @ 1.1'