The Swift River, which the highway follows down its eastern half — a classic White Mountain river of ledges, pools, and rapids.
Hear that? Off to your right now runs the Swift River, and it will be our companion the rest of the way down. Don't let the name fool you into thinking it's always raging — in a dry August it can be a gentle thing, sliding over pink granite ledges into pools clear enough to count the stones on the bottom. But after a hard rain or the spring snowmelt, the Swift earns its name, roaring brown and white through its boulders. This river is why the eastern half of this drive is a string of pull-offs — gorges, falls, and swimming holes, one after another. We'll stop at the best of them. The forest down here is lower and warmer, big hemlocks leaning over the water, and in the pools you might spot native brook trout holding in the current. Coming up on your right is the turn for one of the loveliest short walks in the mountains — get ready to pull in.