Mascoma Lake
Mascoma Lake, February 2005
Mascoma Lake Show map of New Hampshire Mascoma Lake Show map of the United States
Location	Grafton County, New Hampshire
Coordinates	43°37′20″N 72°8′27″W / 43.62222°N 72.14083°W / 43.62222; -72.14083
Primary inflows	Mascoma River; Knox River
Primary outflows	Mascoma River
Basin countries	United States

Max. length	4.2 mi (6.8 km)
Max. width	0.7 mi (1.1 km)
Surface area	1,165 acres (4.71 km²)
Average depth	30 ft (9.1 m)
Max. depth	68 ft (21 m)
Surface elevation	228 m (748 ft)

Islands	Wood Island; Relhan Island; North Island
Settlements	Enfield; Lebanon (village of Mascoma)

MASCOMA LAKE, ENFIELD, N.H.; ca. 1906; Enfield Shaker Museum

Mascoma Lake is a 1,158-acre (469 ha)^[1] lake in western New Hampshire, United States. Most of the lake is within the town of Enfield, while a small portion is within the city of Lebanon, where it drains into the Mascoma River, a tributary of the Connecticut River.

The lake's general trend is from southeast to northwest, with the outlet at the northwestern end. The Mascoma River enters the lake near its halfway point, from the northeastern side, at the town center of Enfield. The southeastern end of the lake is fed by the Knox River. The lake's average depth is 30 feet (9.1 m) with a maximum depth of 68 feet (21 m).^[1]

The lake freezes during winter and is stable enough to be walked upon. Ice fishing is popular on the lake. The lake is stocked with trout by the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department.

Mascoma Lake often has a spring cyanobacteria bloom. Recent studies suggest that significant exposure to high levels of cyanobacteria producing toxins such as BMAA can cause amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). People living within half a mile of cyanobacterially contaminated lakes have had a 2.3 times greater risk of developing ALS than the rest of the population; people around Lake Mascoma had an up to 25 times greater risk of ALS than the expected incidence.^[2]

In June 2009 the State of New Hampshire discouraged people from recreation in some areas of the lake because of the bloom.^[3] Aside from the bloom, the lake is generally considered safe for swimming,^{[citation needed]} and the town of Enfield maintains a public beach with a lifeguard on the lake.

NASA and its partners have used the frozen lake to test a robotic rover as a simulation of Antarctica.^[4]

Mascoma Lake is home to the Dartmouth College sailing team. A community sailing club called the Mascoma Sailing Club^[5] also uses the lake.

References

^ ^a ^b "Mascoma Lake, Enfield, Lebanon" (PDF). NH Fish & Game. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
^ Caller TA, Doolin JW, Haney JF, Murby AJ, West KG, Farrar HE, Ball A, Harris BT, Stommel EW (2009). "A cluster of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in New Hampshire: a possible role for toxic cyanobacteria blooms". Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. 10 (Suppl 2): 101–08. doi:10.3109/17482960903278485. PMID 19929741. S2CID 35250897.
^ State Issues Cyanobacteria Warning for Mascoma Lake
^ "Researchers Deploy Robot on Frozen Lake in Preparation for Antarctic Expedition".
^ Mascoma Sailing Club

Connecticut River watershed

Tributaries

Connecticut	Blackledge River Coginchaug River Connecticut River Duck River Eightmile River Falls River Farmington River Hockanum River Hubbard River Jeremy River Lieutenant River Mattabesset River Nepaug River Pameacha Creek Park River Pequabuck River Salmon River Scantic River
Massachusetts	Burnshirt River Chapel Brook Chicopee River Connecticut River Cranberry River Deerfield River East Brookfield River Farmington River Fall River Five Mile River Green River Hubbard River Manhan River Mill River (Northampton) Mill River (Springfield) Millers River Mirey Brook North Branch Millers River North Branch Westfield River North River Otter River Quaboag River Scantic River Seven Mile River Tarbell Brook Ware River Westfield River
New Hampshire	Ammonoosuc River Ashuelot River Blow-me-down Brook The Branch Cold River Connecticut River East Branch Mohawk River Gale River Great Brook Halls Stream Ham Branch Indian River Indian Stream Israel River Johns River Knox River Little River Little Sugar River Mascoma River Millers River Mink Brook Mirey Brook Mohawk River Nash Stream North Branch Gale River North Branch Millers River North Branch Sugar River North Branch Upper Ammonoosuc River Oliverian Brook Otter Brook Partridge Brook Perry Stream Phillips Brook Simms Stream South Branch Ashuelot River South Branch Gale River South Branch Israel River South Branch Sugar River Stocker Brook Sugar River Tarbell Brook Upper Ammonoosuc River West Branch Mohawk River West Branch Upper Ammonoosuc River Wild Ammonoosuc River Zealand River
Vermont	Black River Connecticut River Deerfield River Fall River Green River Halls Stream Leach Creek Moose River Nulhegan River Ompompanoosuc River Ottauquechee River Passumpsic River Rock River Saxtons River Utley Brook Waits River Wells River West River Whetstone Brook White River Williams River Winhall River

Lakes

Connecticut	Barkhamsted Reservoir Lake Beseck Lake Hayward Lake Pocotopaug
Massachusetts	Brooks Pond Browning Pond Lake Monomonac Quabbin Reservoir Lake Wyola
New Hampshire	Ashuelot Pond Back Lake Canaan Street Lake Cedar Pond Christine Lake Comerford Reservoir Connecticut Lakes Crystal Lake Dublin Pond Eastman Pond Echo Lake Lake Francis (Murphy Dam) Goose Pond Grafton Pond Granite Lake Lakes of the Clouds Little Sunapee Lake Mascoma Lake McIndoes Reservoir Lake Monomonac Moore Reservoir Pearly Lake Silver Lake Spofford Lake Lake Sunapee Surry Mountain Lake Lake Tarleton
Vermont	Ball Mountain Lake Comerford Reservoir Harriman Reservoir Harvey's Lake McIndoes Reservoir Moore Reservoir North Hartland Lake Lake Rescue Townshend Lake

Towns

Connecticut	Chester Cromwell Deep River East Haddam East Hampton East Hartford East Windsor Enfield Essex Glastonbury Haddam Hartford Higganum Lyme Middletown Moodus Old Lyme Old Saybrook Portland Rocky Hill South Windsor Suffield Thompsonville Wethersfield Windsor Windsor Locks
Massachusetts	Agawam Chicopee Deerfield Easthampton Gill Greenfield Hadley Hatfield Holyoke Longmeadow Millers Falls Montague Northampton Northfield South Hadley Springfield Sunderland Turners Falls West Springfield Whately
New Hampshire	Bath Charlestown Chesterfield Claremont Clarksville Colebrook Columbia Cornish Dalton Groveton Hanover Haverhill Hinsdale Lancaster Lebanon Littleton Lyme Monroe Northumberland Orford Piermont Pittsburg Plainfield Stewartstown Stratford Walpole West Lebanon Westmoreland Woodsville
Quebec	East Hereford
Vermont	Ascutney Barnet Beecher Falls Bellows Falls Bloomfield Bradford Brattleboro Brunswick Canaan Concord Dummerston Fairlee Gilman Guildhall Hartford Hartland Lemington Lunenburg Maidstone Newbury Norwich Putney Rockingham Ryegate Springfield Thetford Vernon Waterford Weathersfield Wells River Westminster White River Junction Wilder Windsor

Crossings

See also

References