Most waterfalls in New England tend to have names that bring to mind enigmatic figures or events. LIke “Mother Walker Falls” in Maine’s Grafton Notch State Park. Who was she? Or “Little Hellgate Falls” at the tip-top of New Hampshire? What happened there? But in the woods just outside of North Conway, there’s a timeless and widely-beloved set of cascades whose moniker evokes the scenes of a John Waterhouse painting and the guitar chords of an early 1990s dreampop record.
I’m talking about Diana’s Baths. Imagine a collection of naturally-formed whirlpools, fed by waterfalls that would look right at home in a billionaire’s private grotto, and you’ll have the gist of what draws so many visitors to this ethereal place. (The name was coined by the former land owner, as an allusion to Diana the Roman goddess of nature.) But there’s a dark side to the baths. Over the last decade, visitor demand for access to Diana’s Baths has outgrown the size of the parking lot for the short access trail. And parking is not allowed on the shoulders of West Side Road, where the lot is located. This means that almost every day, each summer, there’s a long line of idling cars on the road, waiting to get into the parking lot—a contender for one of the most depressing sights in the White Mountains. Inhaling exhaust while waiting for a swim.
Normally, this is where I would encourage you to check out some of the other lovely swimming holes in the White Mountains, such as Jackson Falls or Sawyer Pond. But everyone with a soft spot for northern New England should be able to step into the bone-chilling waters of Diana’s Baths at least once, and lucky for you, I’ve decided to dedicate this week’s newsletter to an alternative “back door” method of accessing these magical cascades! It requires a robust hike, but on top of gaining access to Diana’s Baths, you’ll also be rewarded with a stellar vista of North Conway, and a peaceful walk on a country road, along which you’ll see big cows and distant peaks.