The White Mountains are a mountain range covering about a quarter of the state of New Hampshire and a small portion of western Maine in the United States. They are part of the northern Appalachian Mountains and the most rugged mountains in New England. The range is heavily visited due to its proximity to Boston and, to a lesser extent, New York City and Montreal.
Most of the area is public land, including the White Mountain National Forest and a number of state parks. Its most famous mountain is 6,288-foot Mount Washington, which is the highest peak in the Northeastern U.S. and for 76 years held the record for fastest surface wind gust in the world. Mount Washington is part of a line of summits, the Presidential Range, that are named after U.S. presidents and other prominent Americans.
The White Mountains also include the Franconia Range, Sandwich Range, Carter-Moriah Range and Kinsman Range in New Hampshire, and the Mahoosuc Range straddling the border between it and Maine. In all, there are 48 peaks within New Hampshire as well as one in Maine over 4,000 feet, known as the four-thousand footers.