Through spectacular live animal exhibits, natural science education programs, and lake cruises, Squam Lakes Natural Science Center has educated and enlightened visitors for over forty years about our natural world. In September 2006 and again in September 2011, the center gained national accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA); and is the only AZA-accredited institution in northern New England.

The mission of Squam Lakes Natural Science Center is to advance understanding of ecology by exploring New Hampshire’s natural world.

Squam Lakes Natural Science Center is located on NH-113 in Holderness, exit 24 off I-93. The Gephart Exhibit Trail is open daily from May 1 through November 1, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (last admission at 3:30 p.m.)
Offices are open year-round from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Widely known as the filming location for On Golden Pond, Squam Lake is a quieter summertime destination in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire that sits just south of the White Mountains and northwest of Lake Winnipesaukee. Squam Lake serves as a nesting site for loons, bald eagles, and great blue herons; it’s also home to a plethora of fish species, including trout, salmon, bass, pickerel, and perch. Dotted with about 30 islands and several unnamed islets, it drains via a channel into Little Squam Lake. There’s a sense of natural serenity here, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to do. Squam is surrounded by four lively Lakes Region towns, ensuring that visitors will find plenty of things to do, places to stay, and eateries to check out.