The Mount Lincoln via Falling Waters is a 7.7-mile out-and-back with 3,515 ft of elevation gain.
7.7 mi • 3,515 ft gain • 4-7 hours • Lafayette Place (Falling Waters Trail)
Feels like 30°F
Recent Precipitation
Rain: 0.11" (24h) · 0.11" (48h)
Best Hiking Window
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 5,089' elevation
Tap a day header to expand to 3hr or hourly detail
Today Oct 5 | Tomorrow Oct 6 | Wednesday Oct 7 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AM | PM | night | AM | PM | night | AM | PM | night | |
| Temperature & Wind | |||||||||
| Weather | rain | fog | fog | fog | fog | cloudy | cloudy | cloudy | cloudy |
| Temp °F hi / lo | 44° 38° | 39° 29° | 27° 22° | 23° 22° | 28° 23° | 37° 28° | 44° 38° | 46° 43° | 50° 47° |
| Chill °F | 25° | 11° | 1° | 1° | 4° | 12° | 27° | 32° | 36° |
| Wind mph | 32 | 42 | 47 | 47 | 37 | 31 | 23 | 35 | 47 |
| Gust mph est. | 51 | 59 | 66 | 66 | 59 | — | 31 | 56 | 66 |
| Storm risk | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Precipitation | |||||||||
| Precip in (rain/snow) | 0.2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Chance of precip | 34% | 27% | 5% | 4% | 1% | - | 1% | 1% | 5% |
| Freezing ft | 4,935 ft | 3,297 ft | 9,614 ft | ||||||
| Conditions | |||||||||
| Cloud cover | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Vis mi | <0.1 | <0.1 | <0.1 | <0.1 | <0.1 | clear | clear | clear | clear |
| UV | 2 | 5 | — | 1 | 3 | — | 3 | 5 | — |
Tap a day header to expand AM/PM/Night detail
| Elevation | Today Oct 5 | Tomorrow Oct 6 | Wednesday Oct 7 |
|---|---|---|---|
| lo/hi °F · wind mph & dir · chill °F | |||
| Summit 5,089 ft | 38/44° 32 | 22/23° 47 | 38/44° 23 |
| 5,000 ft | 38/44° 32 | 22/23° 47 | 38/44° 23 |
| 4,100 ft | 42/46° 29 | 24/25° 44 | 38/45° 19 |
| 3,300 ft | 45/47° 23 | 27/28° 36 | 39/45° 15 |
| 2,500 ft | 47/49° 16 | 30/31° 27 | 41/47° 12 |
| Trailhead 2,000 ft | 49/51° 14 | 32/33° 22 | 40/49° 10 |
4 more days of forecast: plan around the weather window, not just tomorrow.
Full hourly summit forecasts: Mount Lincoln weather
Climbs the Falling Waters Trail past a series of waterfalls to Little Haystack, then north along the open crest of Franconia Ridge to Lincoln's summit. The ridge is above treeline and exposed the whole way, and the brook crossings low on Falling Waters can be tricky in high water.
Distance
7.7 mi
Elevation Gain
3,515 ft
Duration
4-7 hours
Trailhead
Lafayette Place (Falling Waters Trail)
The Mount Lincoln via Falling Waters is 7.7 miles round trip, starting at Lafayette Place. At AMC book time (half the distance in hours plus 30 minutes per 1,000 ft of climbing), that works out to roughly 4-7 hours. Most parties take longer than book time on rough or above-treeline terrain, in winter, or with a heavy pack.
The Mount Lincoln via Falling Waters climbs about 3,515 ft over 7.7 miles, an average of roughly 458 ft of gain per mile. That figure is cumulative ascent across the whole out-and-back, not the difference between the trailhead and the high point.
HikerNerd rates the Mount Lincoln via Falling Waters Very hard on a six-tier scale from Easy to Most demanding. The rating comes from the route itself: its 7.7 miles, 3,515 ft of gain, and the steepest quarter mile of trail, with routes known for scrambles or ledges rated a step harder. It is the same scale our NH 4,000-footer difficulty ranking uses. Above-treeline exposure, water crossings, and winter conditions can still make a well-rated route the hardest day of your year, so check current conditions before committing.
The Mount Lincoln via Falling Waters summits 1 named peak: Mount Lincoln.
The Mount Lincoln via Falling Waters starts at Lafayette Place. Check the trail alerts on this page before you drive: trailhead access and parking in the White Mountains change with closures and construction.
Been to Mount Lincoln via Falling Waters?
Be the first to share your experience!