Five Summer Pastimes to Enjoy from Your Squam Lake Home

Serene and idyllic, Squam Lake holds a special status in New Hampshire's Lakes Region. While its much bigger cousin, Lake Winnipesaukee, may be busier, Squam Lake offers a quieter, more tranquil experience that visitors and area residents have appreciated for generations. Squam Lake is famous for being the real-life setting for the 1981 feature film "On Golden Pond," which starred Jane Fonda, Henry Fonda, and Katharine Hepburn. The lively towns of Holderness and Center Harbor hug its southern shores, with Holderness straddling the channel between Squam Lake and Little Squam Lake. Homebuyers who invest in Squam Lake real estate can expect to live a home with breathtaking views of the lake or the surrounding mountains. During the summer, there's no shortage of outdoor activities centered on the sparking waters of this gorgeous freshwater lake. Here are five time-honored summer pastimes to enjoy from your Squam Lake home.

1. Small-Craft Sailing

Squam Lake has a speed limit of 40 mph during the day and 20 mph at night, and no houseboats or skicrafts are allowed. Several portions of the lake are no-wake areas. These restrictions make Squam a haven for small-craft boating, which lake residents have cherished for many a summer. The Squam Lakes Association runs a community sailing program where young sailors can learn to sail.

2. Kayaking and Canoeing

The delights of moving a kayak or canoe through the water under your own power is an incomparable experience and one that's even more rewarding on Squam Lake. With a surface area of nearly 6,800 acres and dozens of islands and inlets to explore, Squam is a paddler's paradise. The Squam Lakes Association offers canoe and kayak rentals at the SLA Resource Center on Route 3 in Holderness. Or put your own craft into the water. For kayaking safety tips, check out this article by New Hampshire kayaking expert Peter Gagne.

3. Fishing

Fishing is a favorite summer activity on Squam Lake. This New England Boating article is a great resource for everything you need to know about fishing on Squam Lake, from where and how to find smallmouth bass and how to get a fishing license. In case you didn't know, bass fishing is a major draw on Squam Lake. Squam Lakes Association hosts summertime, recreational-style bass tournaments and also provides a video resource on how to catch and release.

4. Swimming

The best way to go swimming in Squam Lake is from the dock or lakeside of your own Squam Lake waterfront home. Center Harbor residents can enjoy the Center Harbor Town Beach for residents of Center Harbor and Moultonborough only.

5. Nature Watching

Squam Lake is renowned for birdwatching, especially because of its loon population and also for the numerous bird species found in the Squam Lakes Watershed. You can help protect loons by volunteering for the Loon Chick Watch Program. Managed by the Squam Lakes Association, loon chick watchers collect data and help loon families by serving as a buffer between nesting loons and boaters. Squam Lakes Natural Science Center offers a loon cruise and a naturalist's cruise. Both provide unforgettable outings for learning about and viewing Squam Lake wildlife. Squam Lake is special to us here at Peabody and Smith! Read some of our other blog posts about this New Hampshire Lakes Region treasure.

"Squam Lake, New Hampshire" by Chuck Taylor is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Categories: New Hampshire Lifestyle