Beecher Falls is a Class II–III rapid on the upper Connecticut River in Essex County, Vermont, where the river passes the village of Beecher Falls at the Canadian border. It is classified as a minor set of rapids rather than a true waterfall, with no recorded height.
The falls
Accounts describe it as a Class II or Class III rapid, churning over a stretch of rocky ledges down toward Canaan, Vermont. Upstream, the river from Pittsburg down runs as Class I-II but very rocky.
Getting there
The rapid is reached by river. Paddlers often put in at Bacon Bridge on Fletcher Street, which has a small lot for about three cars, and take out just above Canaan Dam on the Vermont side. Paddlers who want to carry around the rapid can use Beecher Falls Landing, behind the closed Candlestick Restaurant just downstream of the Route 3 bridge on the Vermont side.
When to go
Flow on this stretch depends on releases from Murphy Dam at Lake Francis. Tall Timber Lodge found at least 450 cfs gave the best float above Beecher Falls, and 800 cfs was almost too much.
On site
In a 2016 trip, a paddler capsized after the first shelf on the Vermont side, hit by a large rock, and came away with bruises and a bent paddle; scouting the rapid first is recommended.
Nearby
MacKeanon Falls on the Dead Diamond River is about 18 miles away, Hellgate Falls on the same river about 19.2 miles and Ellingwood Falls on the Swift Diamond River about 20.7 miles, all in New Hampshire.
Distances are straight-line.