Diana’s Baths – North Conway, NH

Every now and then, I like to encourage our visitors to venture a bit further.  North Conway, NH seems to be a very popular vacation spot for the South of Boston crowd, especially because of the ever popular Storyland.  But while you are there, I encourage you to visit another site, Diana’s Baths. Diana’s Baths is truly nature’s playground.

We recently went with my in laws,  two kids (ages 2 and 5), and 2 dogs, (one of which is 6 lbs) who all made it up!  There’s a parking lot at the trail head where you pay a mere $3 per car to visit the Falls.  The hike itself to the falls is pretty easy, flat, wide and only about 6/10ths of a mile.  Once you get there, you will find a beautiful cascading waterfall among rocks and pools that seems to keep going and going.  There are many boulders, ledges and places to explore.

The kids and I came prepared with our bathing suits, water shoes and flotation devices and decided to play in the water.  There were plenty of shall and safe areas for them to cool down and enjoy the fresh water.  We hiked up a little farther and jumped over a few rocks to get to the large waterfall.  My husband bravely took a dip under it while the kids watched in delight.  The dog even had a great time lapping up the crystal clear water and getting her feet wet.

Few things to note:

• There are bathrooms at the end of the trail but you need a strong stomach to use them
• Dogs are allowed
• I believe there were some signs that said no swimming but EVERYONE was in bathing suits enjoying the water (We will not be held responsible though!  Use at your own risk)

How to get there:

It’s a bit tricky to find.  Looks for the signs for Cathedral Ledge and Echo State Park, as its very close to there.

The parking lot for Diana’s Baths is located on West Side Road, North Conway NH 03860

From Conway Village, head north on Route 16/302 (White Mountain Hwy) past the Eastern Slope Inn. At the next set of lights turn left onto River Rd. Stay straight on River road for Aprox. 1 mile when the road changes to West Side Road. Stay straight on West Side road for Aprox. 1.5 miles (you will go past the sign for the road leading to Cathedral Ledge) and you will see the sign for Diana’s Baths parking lot on the left hand side of the road.