The glaciers deposited large rocks scattered everywhere in the woods when the ice melted about 11,000 years ago.

Some local residents can trace their ancestry back to the Native American Penacooks, who hunted geese in the autumn and fished for speckled trout using nets, weirs and spears.

Following the extension of the B&M Railroad into Newbury, Lake Sunapee became a popular vacation area long before the introduction of the automobile.

Today, the village contains a colorful antique caboose commemorating the railroad line that passed by, bringing vacationers from other parts of the country.

Bay Point, Blodgett Landing, and Indian Cave, later known as Lake Avenue, were the most populated piers.

He then launched the Penacook (later renamed Mountain Maid) steamer to carry passengers to Little Island, and so the steamboat era began.

The 52-foot (16 m) MV Mount Sunapee II was launched in 1965 and takes passengers on lake cruises in summer months.

The original Mount Sunapee was named Susie Q and had been a rum runner in Damariscotta, Maine.

The 65-foot (20 m) MV Kearsarge, named for the original steamship Kearsarge, was built and launched on Lake Sunapee in 1970 as the Sunapee Belle, a replica of a Mississippi River boat, and operated as a dinner boat.

The watershed is surrounded by high hills and 55 square miles (142 km2) of town lands including parts of Sunapee, Newbury, Sutton, New London, Springfield and Goshen.

A watershed is an ecosystem of animals, plants, micro-organisms and people who all affect the physical and chemical environment.

Probably best known for its skiing and snowboarding, the park also offers opportunities for front-country camping, hiking, and swimming on the beach on Lake Sunapee.

The beach is the starting point for an occasional Iron Man Triathlon one-half mile swim sprint off the beach, followed by a 100-mile (160 km) bike race around the lake, followed by a marathon run around Lake Sunapee.

Lake Sunapee was the source of water power for the mills that were built on the banks of the Sugar River as it meandered through Newport and Claremont.

In 1820, some proprietors formed a group that led to the formation of the Sunapee Dam Corporation which, through an act of the New Hampshire legislature, obtained sole control of the lake's water level.

[6] The Lake Sunapee Yacht Club is host to 23 Starboats, one of the largest inland fleets of the Olympic-class vessel.

Lake Sunapee's own Brad Nichol and his teammate Andy Horton, Starboat contenders for the 2008 Olympics, were named 2006 Team of the Year by US SAILING, the national governing body of sailing in the United States.

The LSPA also maintains a Live Buoy and three professional-grade weather instruments with rain gauges at three locations on the lake.