Strafford Town Beach

Managed by New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services

Bow Lake is a 1,160 acres lake located in the towns of Strafford NH and Northwood NH. Bow Lake flows to the Atlantic Ocean by the Cocheco and Piscataqua rivers. There are seven islands surrounding the lake. Bow Lake also offers fish stocking programs.

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COVID-19

Keep your distance from other people.

Practicing social distancing is still essential. Only go to the beach if you are able to keep 6 feet or 2 meters away from others. Follow the instructions provided by your local health authorities. If your community has asked that you remain indoors and away from others, do so. Spending a day in any crowded place is the worst thing we can do for our most vulnerable right now and will counter our efforts to curb the virus’s spread.

Water Quality

No data available
Current Status
This status is based on the latest sample. New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services updates the status of this beach as soon as test results become available.

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Monitoring Frequency

Source Information

The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services monitors water quality at beaches in the state from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Water samples are collected several times a week throughout the swimming season. When advisories are issued, they are posted on the DES website and on its beach advisory Twitter feed (@NHDES_Beaches).

NHDES posts their latest test results to Swim Guide during the monitoring season as soon as they become available.

A beach is marked Green when test results are below water quality standards of 88 counts of E. coli per 100ml or when the geometric mean of at least three samples collected in a 60-day period meets the standard of 47 counts of E. coli per 100ml of water..

A freshwater beach is marked Red when two consecutive samples exceed 88 counts of E. coli per 100ml or when the geometric mean of at least three samples collected in a 60-day period exceeds 47 counts of E. coli per 100ml of water.

A beach is marked Grey when current or reliable information is unavailable.

Water Quality Graph