The Cockermouth River is a 9.5 miles (15.3 km) stream

Stream

A stream is a body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as a branch, brook, beck, burn, creek, "crick", gill , kill, lick, rill, river, syke, bayou, rivulet, streamage, wash, run or...

 located in central New Hampshire

New Hampshire

New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is the longest tributary of Newfound Lake

Newfound Lake

Newfound Lake is located in Grafton County, New Hampshire, USA, within the towns of Bridgewater, Bristol, Alexandria, and Hebron. The lake is located in a section of New Hampshire known as the Lakes Region. At 4,451 acres, it is the third-largest lake located entirely in New Hampshire. The lake's...

, part of the Pemigewasset River

Pemigewasset River

The Pemigewasset River , known locally as "The Pemi", is a river in the state of New Hampshire, the United States. It is in length and drains approximately...

 and ultimately Merrimack River

Merrimack River

The Merrimack River is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into Massachusetts, and then flows northeast until it empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Newburyport...

 watersheds

Drainage basin

A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...

. The river takes its name from the "Cockermouth Grant", an early name for a portion of the town of Hebron

Hebron, New Hampshire

Hebron is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 602 at the 2010 census. Settlements include the town center and the village of East Hebron.- History :...

.

The river begins in Province Road State Forest near the western boundary of Groton, New Hampshire

Groton, New Hampshire

Groton is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 593 at the 2010 census.- History :The town was originally named Cockermouth in honor of Charles Wyndham, Baron Cockermouth and Earl of Egremont, who was Secretary of State for the Southern Department from 1761 to...

 and proceeds southeast across the entire town of Groton. The river is closely paralleled by Sculptured Rocks Road, a very rough dirt road which gradually becomes more passable to automobiles as it proceeds downstream. The river passes through Sculptured Rocks Natural Area, a series of narrow, sharply-carved rock formations that are a popular local swimming hole

Swimming hole

A swimming hole is a place in a river, stream, creek, spring, or similar natural body of water, which is large enough and deep enough for a person to swim in...

, then enters a broader valley as it passes the village center of Groton.

Continuing east, the Cockermouth River enters the town of Hebron and flows into Newfound Lake near the lake's northern end.