Sabbaday Falls is the waterfall you can reach in your riding boots. A short, well-made path leads from the roadside car park through hemlock and birch woods for about a third of a mile to a three-step cascade where the Sabbaday Brook squeezes through a narrow granite flume, drops in a series of pools and finishes in a green basin. The stone is smooth and pale, the water is clear and cold, and a bridge and platforms let you look down into the cleft without climbing over wet rock.
The name is old, and the story behind it is vague. One explanation is that early settlers surveying the area came to the falls on a Sunday, the Sabbath, and so gave it the name, though no one is entirely sure. What the geology shows is more certain. The brook has cut a gorge through a basalt dike, a vertical sheet of dark rock that cooled in a crack in the granite hundreds of millions of years ago, and the water has been working through it since the end of the ice age. The result is a compact flume with sharp walls and pools sculpted by swirling water.
The setting is the White Mountain National Forest, along the Kancamagus Highway, which makes it a classic stop on the ride. The road is smooth and gently winding, with the forest pressing close on both sides, and the car park here is easy to find, with toilets, picnic tables and a small fee area where a parking pass is required. In summer the woods are cool and green, and the sound of water is welcome after a warm ride. In autumn the leaves are brilliant and the car park fills early, so weekday mornings are best. After heavy rain the falls roar, and the path can be muddy.
Wildlife in the area includes moose, black bears, deer and many songbirds, and the smell of damp earth and conifers is a pleasure after the road. Take a moment to listen. The only sounds are water and wind in the trees.
The nearest larger town on the map is Moultonborough, but the practical choices are Conway and North Conway, with the towns of Tamworth and Albany nearer the road. Bring water, and wear shoes you can walk in.
Allow half an hour for the walk and the view. It is among the easiest and best short stops on the Kanc.