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Watershed Management Bureau
Rivers Management and Protection Program (RMPP)
Designated Rivers
The Merrimack River is the second largest river in New England, draining a total area of
5,014 square miles extending from the White Mountain region of New Hampshire to east-central
Massachusetts. The river, which bisects the lower third of New Hampshire, begins at the
confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee Rivers in Franklin. It flows for 116 miles
before entering the Atlantic Ocean in Newburyport, Massachusetts.
A segment of the river, known as the Lower Merrimack, is one of two on the river
designated under the NH Rivers Management and Protection Program in June 1990 protecting
nearly 45 river miles. The segment begins at the Merrimack-Bedford town line and flows for
approximately 15 miles through the communities of Merrimack, Litchfield, Hudson, and Nashua
before entering Massachusetts.
The Lower Merrimack River flows through a region of rapid population growth and
development that is heavily influenced by the Boston metropolitan area. Notably, it provides
drinking water to the city of Nashua and surrounding towns as well as to downstream
communities in Massachusetts, including the cities of Lowell and Lawrence.
History
The Merrimack River played a pivotal role in the settlement and subsequent development
of the region. Native American sites, cellar holes, cemeteries and the remains of a canal
navigation system are included among the prehistoric and historic sites which offer additional
historic knowledge of the river and its corridor. Of particular interest are the Naticook Islands,
just downstream of the Depot Street public access in Merrimack, which are said to have been the
summer home of the great Native American Chief Passaconoway. Another historical highlight of
the area are the locks at Cromwells Falls, renowned by The American Canal Society as the best
remaining specimen of the Merrimack River Navigation System. In Litchfield, two archaeological
sites have been deemed eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places: the
Thebodeau site north of Chase Brook and the Danforth Archaeological District in south
Litchfield.
Wildlife and Plant Resources
Though located in a region of rapid land development, the Lower Merrimack River is a
safe haven of critical habitat for a variety of plant and animal species, including the federally-listed
threatened bald eagle. The river corridor provides the necessary elements of eagle wintering
habitat: perch or roost sites and open waters for fishing.
Perch sites -- large open branched trees -- on the river's bank provide the eagles with good
viewing areas from which to locate food. At night, the eagles move to more sheltered inland
areas, usually conifer stands, that offer protection from the wind and cold temperatures. The
Audubon Society of New Hampshire, which records eagle sightings in New Hampshire, has found
that the level of winter eagle activity on the Merrimack River is second only to that on Great Bay,
a tidal estuary system on New Hampshire's coast. As one of New England's major north-south
running rivers, the Lower Merrimack River also serves as a key migratory route for waterfowl
and songbirds.
The New Hampshire Natural Heritage Inventory has identified several state-listed
threatened plant species within the river corridor, including the wild lupine. In addition, the river
corridor supports two exemplary natural communities: Southern New England lake sediment/river
terrace forest and Northern New England level bog. One state threatened reptile, the eastern
hognose snake, is also believed to live in the river corridor.
Boating
Current boating activities on the Lower Merrimack River include canoeing, kayaking,
rowing and power boating. The river provides both quickwater and flatwater experiences for
canoeists and kayakers and is one of the largest surface water bodies in the region for power
boating. The Merrimack River Watershed Council sponsors a variety of canoe trips on the
Merrimack and its tributaries throughout the spring, summer and fall for beginner and
intermediate paddlers.
Just north of the designated segment, boaters can access the river at three public access
sites in Manchester. Kayakers and whitewater canoeists may be lured to Arms Park, a city
recreation area, located off North Commercial Street, as a whitewater slalom course exists at the
site. In Merrimack, there is access at Depot Street (off Exit 12 on the Everett Turnpike) at Reeds
Ferry. This is a suitable put-in for motorboats, as the river slows from the rocky rapids upstream.
At the north end of Greely Park in Nashua, there is a paved ramp which also allows access to
boaters.
Recreation
Efforts are underway to obtain easements for a hiking trail that would become part of the
New Hampshire Heritage Trail, stretching from the Massachusetts border, north along the
Merrimack, Pemigewasset and Connecticut Rivers, to the Canadian border. Several trail sections
are complete along this part of the river. In Bedford, the trail begins at Moore's Crossing Road
and follows the river north for one mile. Another section of the trail begins at Merrill Park off
Maple Avenue in Hudson, and continues along the river south into Massachusetts. Trail users
also have the option to travel west into Nashua to explore that city's historic district and a section
of the Nashua River, a major tributary to the Merrimack.
Fishing
Anadromous fish species are beginning to return to the Lower Merrimack River as the
result of a cooperative state-federal restoration program that began in 1969. New and improved
fish passage facilities and on-going research efforts are directed toward the return of the native
Atlantic salmon to waters as far north as the Pemigewasset River. The completion of a fish
passage facility at the Pawtucket Dam in 1986 has allowed American shad to move upstream to
Manchester after more than a century's absence. Important game species sought by anglers on the
Lower Merrimack River include small and large mouth bass as well as rainbow and brook trout
which are stocked by the New Hampshire Fish and Game
Department. Access can be gained to the river at various points in Nashua, Merrimack and
Manchester.
For Further Information about the Lower Merrimack River contact:
Stan Kazlouskas
83 West Pearl St.
Nashua, NH 03060
Tel. (603) 882 - 7224
For Further Information about the NH Rivers Management and Protection Program
contact:
Rivers Coordinator
29 Hazen Drive, PO Box 95
Concord, NH 03302-0095
(603) 271-8801
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