Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve

Overview

Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve is managed by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and is located near Greenland, New Hampshire. Located on the New Hampshire and Maine border, Great Bay estuary is a complex embayment and New Hampshire's largest estuarine system. The Great Bay Reserve offers a diversity of land and water area, including upland forest, salt marsh, mudflats, tidal creeks, rocky intertidal, eelgrass beds, channel bottom/subtidal and upland field habitats. The reserve encompasses 10,235 acres, including approximately 7,300 acres of open water and wetlands. The Bay's cultural heritage is equally diverse, from paleo-Indian villages 6,000 years ago to colonial transportation and industrial use and ultimately protection in the face of a proposed oil refinery in 1973.