White Mountain National Forest Campground - Dolly Copp

42. GALLERY: VIEW INTO CARTER NOTCH


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Scenic Carter Notch is 4.7 miles south by southeast of the Dolly Copp Homesite. The view of Carter Notch has always been an enjoyable feature of the Campground.

The Dolly Copp Homestead is at elevation 1,250. The low point of Carter Notch is at an elevation of 3,388 feet. Then to the right in these photos the summit of adjacent Wildcat Mountain rises to 4,422 feet.

The shape of the Notch relates to glacial history, for the glaciers that once covered New Hampshire scoured its underlying landscape. Basic research on this topic was completed in 1951 by the NH State Planning and Development Commission and entitled "The Geology of New Hampshire."According to that work:

On a few drainage divides, where high mountains deflected more of the creeping ice through a saddle, the ice movement was vigorous and the scour was concentrated. This is strikingly exhibited by deep cliff-walled notches like Carter Notch which forms a beautiful U-shaped skyline as seen from all up and down eastern New Hampshire (Figure 7).

Figure 7. Carter Notch between Mount Washington (right) and Carter Dome (left). in the White Mountains. this was deepened many tens of feet and rounded into a "U" shape by the continental ice sheet which rode through in the direction of this view. (Photo by G. Shorey).

Guy Shorey's photo of Carter Notch, taken from
inside today's Campground sometime near 1915. This
photo was used as "Figure 7" to typify New Hampshire's
notches in the 1951 "The Geology of New Hampshire."
See more detailed view of Shorey's Carter Notch photo.

As Dolly Copp Campground is north by northwest
of Carter Notch, the same alignment as the Notch itself,
the characteristic U shaped valley is clearly visible to campers.

Early Campground photo courtesy of Bob Rich.

Notch is faint and to right, photo believed to be from 1932.

Source: Scott McClory Dolly Copp Collection
See same view at higher resolution.

View to Notch from Knoll about 1939,
with new Administration Building across field.

Overall the view from the Campground south to Carter notch has become less accessible in recent decades.The cause is reforestation from the earlier agricultural era.