The Franconia Ridge with Flume is a 15.4-mile loop with 4,980 ft of elevation gain.
Submitted by Aaron B.
15.4 mi • 4,980 ft gain • 8-13 hours • Basin
Pemigewasset Wilderness Food Storage Requirement
Effective May 1st, 2026, all overnight campers in the Pemigewasset Wilderness must store all food, food containers, scented items (such as soap, lip balm, and toothpaste) and refuse in a cylindrical, hard-sided, non-pliable Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee (IGBC) certified bear resistant canister. Alternative methods, including bear hangs, for storing food and bear attractants in the Pemigewasset Wilderness will no longer be permitted as they have proven to be less effective than canisters. The only exceptions are the bear resistant food boxes located at the Thirteen Falls Tent Site.
Source: Forest Service
Feels like 43°F
Recent Precipitation
Rain: 0.06" (24h) · 0.06" (48h)
Best Hiking Window
POSTPONE until Thursday or later when the storm clears and winds subside. Do not attempt this route today under any circumstances. If conditions improve Thursday, plan for a pre-dawn departure (before 6 AM) to maximize daylight for this demanding 15+ mile route.
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.
Summit-level conditions by time of day at 4,328' elevation
Tap a day header to expand to 3hr or hourly detail
Tuesday Sep 1 | Today Sep 2 | Tomorrow Sep 3 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AM | PM | night | AM | PM | night | AM | PM | night | |
| Temperature & Wind | |||||||||
| Weather | cloudy | cloudy | fog | fog | fog | rain | drizzle | drizzle | ptly cloudy |
| Temp °F hi / lo | 51° 50° | 51° 50° | 51° 49° | 49° 48° | 52° 48° | 53° 52° | 54° 52° | 55° 53° | 54° 52° |
| Chill °F | 48° | 47° | 43° | 42° | 42° | — | — | — | — |
| Wind mph | 6 | 8 | 15 | 14 | 17 | 43 | 35 | 23 | 20 |
| Gust mph est. | — | 13 | 24 | 22 | 26 | 60 | 56 | 37 | 26 |
| Storm risk | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Precipitation | |||||||||
| Precip in (rain/snow) | - | - | - | - | - | 0.4 | 0.1 | - | - |
| Freezing ft | 12,650 ft | 13,108 ft | 13,378 ft | ||||||
| Conditions | |||||||||
| Cloud cover | 99% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 65% |
| Vis mi | clear | 9 | 0.2 | <0.1 | <0.1 | <0.1 | <0.1 | 4 | clear |
| UV | 3 | 6 | — | 1 | 1 | — | 0 | 4 | — |
Tap a day header to expand AM/PM/Night detail
| Elevation | Tuesday Sep 1 | Today Sep 2 | Tomorrow Sep 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| lo/hi °F · wind mph & dir · chill °F | |||
| Summit 5,260 ft | 50/51° 6 | 48/49° 14 | 52/54° 35 |
| 5,000 ft | 51/52° 5 | 49/50° 14 | 52/54° 34 |
| 4,100 ft | 53/55° 6 | 51/52° 14 | 53/56° 31 |
| 3,300 ft | 55/58° 5 | 53/54° 15 | 54/58° 27 |
| 2,500 ft | 56/59° 5 | 55/56° 13 | 55/61° 22 |
| Trailhead 2,000 ft | 58/60° 5 | 56/57° 11 | 56/63° 19 |
4 more days of forecast — plan around the weather window, not just tomorrow.
Full hourly summit forecasts: Mount Lafayette weather · Mount Lincoln weather · Mount Liberty weather · Mount Flume weather
Bike path at the end is killer
Distance
15.4 mi
Elevation Gain
4,980 ft
Duration
8-13 hours
Trailhead
Basin
The Franconia Ridge with Flume is 15.4 miles around the loop, starting at Basin. At AMC book time — half the distance in hours plus 30 minutes per 1,000 ft of climbing — that works out to roughly 8-13 hours. Most parties take longer than book time on rough or above-treeline terrain, in winter, or with a heavy pack.
The Franconia Ridge with Flume climbs about 4,980 ft over 15.4 miles — an average of roughly 324 ft of gain per mile. That figure is cumulative ascent across the whole loop, not the difference between the trailhead and the high point.
HikerNerd rates the Franconia Ridge with Flume Very Difficult, scored with the Shenandoah difficulty formula — √(elevation gain × 2 × distance) — applied to its 15.4 miles and 4,980 ft of gain. The score measures physical effort only. Above-treeline exposure, water crossings, and winter conditions can make a moderate-rated route the hardest day of your year, so check current conditions before committing.
The Franconia Ridge with Flume summits 4 named peaks: Mount Lafayette, Mount Lincoln, Mount Liberty, Mount Flume.
The Franconia Ridge with Flume starts at Basin. Check the trail alerts on this page before you drive — trailhead access and parking in the White Mountains change with closures and construction.
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