Mirror Lake is a clear-water lake in the Hubbard Brook Valley of the White Mountains of New Hampshire (43º56.5’N, 71º41.5’W). This beautiful lake has had several names since white settlers colonized the area in the late 1700s, but on a crisp morning, it is easy to see why this lake has its current name. It reflects its surroundings with the perfection of an expensive mirror.

The name “Mirror Lake” was used after the American Civil War (late 1800s) to describe this beautiful body of water and to attract tourists to the simple inns in the nearby Pemigewasset valley. The original name of the lake was “Hobart’s Pond”, after the family that established the first farm nearby in ~17xx. As a side note: a mis-pronunciation of this name was used to name the nearby “Hubbard” Brook, into which the lake outlet flows, and eventually the world-famous, USDA Forest Service, Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest just up Mirror Lake road.

Mirror Lake has been the focus of comprehensive and continuous scientific study since 1965. Long-term data from these studies provide important insights into the function and change in this aquatic ecosystem. Mirror Lake is one of the most studied lakes in the world. The geological and cultural history of Mirror Lake, as well as its ecology, biogeochemistry and limnology (study of inland waters), are discussed in detail in the book, An Ecosystem Approach to Aquatic Ecology: Mirror Lake and its Environment (Likens 1985).