The Hampton Falls River is a 5.6 mile (9.0 km) long river

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

 in southeastern 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...

. Its lower reaches are tidal

Tidal river

A tidal river is a river, or more typically a stretch of a river, whose flow and level is influenced by tides. An example of a tidal river is the portion of the Connecticut River flowing from Windsor Locks, Connecticut, to the Atlantic Ocean. The Brisbane River, which flows into the Pacific Ocean...

, as part of the Hampton

Hampton, New Hampshire

Hampton is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 14,976 at the 2010 census. Located beside the Atlantic Ocean, Hampton is home to Hampton Beach, a summer tourist destination....

 salt marsh

Salt marsh

A salt marsh is an environment in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and salt water or brackish water, it is dominated by dense stands of halophytic plants such as herbs, grasses, or low shrubs. These plants are terrestrial in origin and are essential to the stability of the salt marsh...

 close to the Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

.

The river rises in the southeast corner of Kensington, New Hampshire

Kensington, New Hampshire

Kensington is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,124 at the 2010 census.-History:Once a parish of Hampton, Kensington was incorporated in 1737 by Massachusetts Governor Jonathan Belcher, when New Hampshire was still part of that colonial province...

 and travels east into Seabrook

Seabrook, New Hampshire

Seabrook is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 8,693 at the 2010 census. Located at the southern end of the coast of New Hampshire on the border with Massachusetts, Seabrook is noted as the location of the Seabrook Nuclear Power Station, the third-most...

. The river approximately follows the boundary between Seabrook and Hampton Falls

Hampton Falls, New Hampshire

Hampton Falls is a New England town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,236 at the 2010 census.-History:...

, crossing it three times. It passes Weares Mill and eventually heads northeast into Hampton Falls. Approaching the town center, it passes through the chain of three Dodge Ponds, dropping 10 feet over the "Hampton Falls" before entering the final one. Crossing under U.S. Route 1

U.S. Route 1

U.S. Route 1 is a major north–south U.S. Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs 2,377 miles from Fort Kent, Maine at the Canadian border south to Key West, Florida. U.S. 1 generally parallels Interstate 95, though it is significantly farther west between...

, the river enters the Hampton salt marsh, where it ends at the Hampton River

Hampton River (New Hampshire)

The Hampton River is a tidal inlet in the towns of Hampton and Hampton Falls, New Hampshire, the United States. It is surrounded by the largest salt marsh in New Hampshire, covering over ....

.