This trek follows the
Murray River, also known as the ‘Mighty Murray’, which is Australia’s largest river measuring at 2,575kms in length. The
Murray River begins its journey by water draining from some of Australia’s highest peaks in the
Snowy Mountains. It flows west through the Riverina Plains, heading past
Mildura where it bends south at the historic township of
Morgan and then coming to an end into
Lake Alexandrina in South Australia.
This trek not only takes in the natural beauty of the
Murray River and its surrounds, but also the historic beauty with the many towns along the way. Towns like
Echuca which had the biggest inland port in Australia, Swan
Hill which has an authentically recreated 19th century Mallee town and
Mildura - which has abundant significance to Aboriginal culture as
well as
explorers such as Captain Charles Sturt who named the Murray and Darling Rivers.
How to Use this Trek Note
- To download this information and the route file for offline use on a phone, tablet, headunit or laptop, go to the app store and purchase ExplorOz Traveller. This app enables offline navigation and mapping and will show where you are as you travel along the route. For more info see the ExplorOz Traveller webpage and the EOTopo webpage.
Environment
Due to the close proximity of the
Murray River, there is a mixture of dry, arid country and fertile, irrigated land, which makes a rather interesting drive. The route is relatively good and there are many long straight sections on flatter terrain. As you journey from Yarrawonga, the timbered countryside diminishes and turns to more dry and arid conditions as you head closer towards
Echuca and beyond.
Some of the Fauna you may encounter especially in the
Murray River parklands region are predominantly kangaroos, emus and koalas. There are over 200 species of birds such as the Australian White Ibis and the Straw-necked Ibis. You may even be lucky to see a Peregrine Falcon flying high in the sky.
Gunbower Island
State Forest, near Cohuna occupies around 130kms of river frontage and features magnificent Red Gum and Box forests covering about 80 percent of the 50km long island. This amazing floodplain between the Murray and Gunbower Creek features a large variety of waterbirds.
History
The
Murray River region is rich with cultural and English/European historical significance. Local indigenous people had lived along the
Murray River for more than 10,000 years. This is evident in some
shell middens (kitchen hearths), burials and
scar trees that you may discover while exploring around. Please respect these Australian
heritage sites, which are protected by law.
One of the greatest explorations of this region in Australian history belongs to Captain Charles Napier Sturt. He was an English explorer who led several expeditions into the interior of the continent, starting from both
Sydney and later from
Adelaide. As he was searching to determine if there was an ‘inland sea’, his expeditions traced several of the westward-flowing rivers, establishing that they all merge into the one river, which he subsequently named ‘
Murray River’.
TrekID: 152