5,089 ft | Franconia | 2 routes
As of August 17, 2026
Trail conditions on Mount Lincoln are currently rated Difficult. It's 51°F (feels like 45°F) with SSE winds at 11 mph. The shortest of 2 listed routes is Lafayette Loop: a 8.9-mile loop with 3,893 ft of elevation gain, taking about 5-8 hours. Mount Lincoln (5,089 ft) is #7 of 48 on the NH 48 list.
Mount Lincoln weather forecast
Hourly summit temps, wind chill & freezing level, trailhead to summit
Feels like 45°F
Recent Precipitation
Rain: 0.52" (24h) · 0.53" (48h)
~3.2°F drop per 1,000ft
Mount Lincoln is showing DIFFICULT conditions
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Trail: Falling Waters Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail, Greenleaf Trail, Old Bridle Path
Conditions: Dry Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable
“Spectacular day on the ridge! Wish there were slightly less people but understand the attraction”
Trail: Falling Waters Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail, Greenleaf Trail, Old Bridle Path
Conditions: Dry Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable
“An amazing day up on the ridge! Plenty of good company, but it never felt crowded or overwhelming. This weekend may be another story...”
Trail: Old Bridle Path, Greenleaf Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail, Falling Waters Trail
Conditions: Dry Trail, Wet Trail
“On my way up to the Hut, I saw a crew working on a new trail section not far from the main trail. I couldn't figure out why until I noticed some excavation near the Falling Waters trail. Then it dawned on me that they were building a bypass (starting at Old Bridal Path and proceeding over to Falling Waters) around some of the more difficult, accident-prone sections of Falling Waters. Gonna be a nice addition...thanks to whoever came up with that plan!”
Tap a day header to expand to 3hr or hourly detail
Sunday Aug 16 | Today Aug 17 | Tomorrow Aug 18 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AM | PM | night | AM | PM | night | AM | PM | night | |
| Temperature & Wind | |||||||||
| Weather | fog | cloudy | rain | rain | fog | drizzle | fog | drizzle | cloudy |
| Temp °F hi / lo | 52° 50° | 54° 51° | 56° 54° | 56° 55° | 60° 57° | 59° 56° | 56° 53° | 57° 52° | 56° 55° |
| Chill °F | 45° | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Wind mph | 13 | 22 | 33 | 28 | 17 | 6 | 10 | 9 | 13 |
| Gust mph est. | 21 | 35 | 53 | 45 | 27 | 10 | 16 | 14 | — |
| Storm risk | — | — | — | — | mod | mod | — | — | — |
| Precipitation | |||||||||
| Precip in (rain/snow) | - | - | 0.1 | 0.2 | - | 0.0 | - | - | - |
| Freezing ft | 14,322 ft | 14,576 ft | 14,461 ft | ||||||
| Conditions | |||||||||
| Cloud cover | 9% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Vis mi | 0.4 | 8 | <0.1 | <0.1 | <0.1 | <0.1 | <0.1 | 9 | clear |
| UV | 5 | 7 | — | 0 | 2 | — | 2 | 7 | — |
Tap a day header to expand AM/PM/Night detail
| Elevation | Sunday Aug 16 | Today Aug 17 | Tomorrow Aug 18 |
|---|---|---|---|
| lo/hi °F · wind mph & dir · chill °F | |||
| Summit 5,089 ft | 50/52° 13 | 55/56° 28 | 53/56° 10 |
| 5,000 ft | 50/52° 13 | 55/56° 28 | 53/56° 10 |
| 4,100 ft | 50/52° 14 | 57/58° 26 | 54/57° 14 |
| 3,300 ft | 50/54° 12 | 59/59° 22 | 56/59° 14 |
| 2,500 ft | 51/57° 9 | 61/62° 16 | 59/61° 12 |
| Trailhead 2,000 ft | 52/59° 7 | 63/64° 13 | 61/63° 10 |
4 more days of forecast — plan around the weather window, not just tomorrow.
Conditions synthesized from: NWS Higher Summits Forecast, NOAA Open-Meteo, Mount Washington Observatory, NETC Trip Reports, NOHRSC Snow Depth, Mt. Washington Avalanche Center, USGS Stream Levels, OpenWeather Air Quality.
AI-generated from public data. Always verify conditions before heading out — backcountry weather can change quickly.
Part of the spectacular Franconia Ridge, usually hiked in combination with Lafayette. The ridge walk between them is one of the best in the Northeast.
Elevation
5,089 ft
Range
Franconia
Rank
#7 of 48
Difficulty
Difficult
Coordinates
44.1488, -71.6446
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5 incidents on file · 1 fatal · drawn from NH Fish and Game releases and regional reporting
Andre Bissonnette, an 80-year-old from Orford Township, Quebec, Canada, hiking with his son Vincent Bissonnette, 45, of Drummondville, Quebec
On June 24, 2026, an 80-year-old hiker began experiencing chest pains while hiking Franconia Ridge near the summit of Mount Lincoln. His son called 911, and due to the hiker's incapacitation and the time required for ground rescue, the NH Army National Guard was called in. A helicopter hoisted both hikers from the summit and transported the patient to Littleton Regional Hospital by 6:05 p.m.
57-year-old male from Wells, Maine
On March 11, 2025, Lawrence Duell, 57, suffered a lower-leg injury while hiking between Lincoln Mountain and Mount Lafayette on Franconia Ridge. A nearby hiker activated a Garmin inReach to alert authorities. Pemigewasset Valley Search and Rescue transported Duell to the trailhead, from which he drove himself to receive medical care.
Anna Meier, 33, of Boston, MA
Meier, hiking the 9-mile Falling Waters/Old Bridle Path loop solo, slipped descending from Mount Lincoln toward Lafayette and injured her lower leg 4.2 miles from the trailhead, in 60-80 mph winds and temperatures in the 30s. Passing hikers reported it; rescuers assisted her out.
James Boule, 57, of Campton, NH
Boule suffered a lower-leg injury on Lincoln's Slide and was assisted out partly by ATV. One of three back-to-back Fish and Game rescue calls in Franconia on July 4.
Guopeng 'Tony' Li, 28, of Salem, NH (originally from Hebei Province, China)
Li set out alone around 11 a.m. on Christmas Eve on the 8.6-mile Bridle Path/Falling Waters loop in near-zero temperatures. A family member in China tracking his phone saw it die at 6:15 p.m. with him lost off-trail south of Mount Lincoln. His body was found around 6:45 a.m. December 25 about a half-mile off the Falling Waters Trail; family described him as inexperienced.