The Herbert River is a
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
located in
Far North Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
. The southernmost of Queensland's wet tropics river systems, it was named in 1864 by
George Elphinstone Dalrymple
George Augustus Frederick Elphinstone Dalrymple (6 May 1826 – 22 January 1876) was a colonist, explorer, public servant and politician, member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland. He founded the towns of Bowen and Cardwell, and pionee ...
explorer, after
Robert George Wyndham Herbert
Sir Robert George Wyndham Herbert, (12 June 1831 – 6 May 1905), was the first Premier of Queensland, Australia. At 28 years and 181 days of age, he was the youngest person ever to be elected premier of an Australian state.
Early years
Born ...
, the first
Premier of Queensland
The premier of Queensland is the head of government in the Australian state of Queensland.
By convention the premier is the leader of the party with a parliamentary majority in the unicameral Legislative Assembly of Queensland. The premier is ap ...
.
Location and features
With its
headwaters
The headwaters of a river or stream is the farthest place in that river or stream from its estuary or downstream confluence with another river, as measured along the course of the river. It is also known as a river's source.
Definition
The ...
forming at an elevation of on the
Atherton Tableland
The Atherton Tableland is a fertile plateau which is part of the Great Dividing Range in Queensland, Australia.
The principal river flowing across the plateau is the Barron River. It was dammed to form an irrigation reservoir named Lake Tina ...
, part of the
Great Dividing Range
The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills, that runs rough ...
west of
Herberton
Herberton is a rural town and locality in the Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Herberton had a population of 855 people.
Geography
Herberton is on the Atherton Tableland in Far North Queensland. It is situa ...
and north of
Ravenshoe, the Herbert River is formed by the
confluence
In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...
of the Millstream and the Wild River. The Herbert River flows in a generally southeastern direction through the
Lumholtz National Park
Girringun National Park is a national park in Queensland, Australia, approximately southwest of Ingham, north of Townsville and northwest of Brisbane. The park is one of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area series of national parks, and is ...
joined by fifteen
tributaries
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage b ...
including the
Stone River and flowing past the town of
Ingham. The Herbert River reaches its
mouth
In animal anatomy, the mouth, also known as the oral cavity, or in Latin cavum oris, is the opening through which many animals take in food and issue vocal sounds. It is also the cavity lying at the upper end of the alimentary canal, bounded on ...
where it enters the
Coral Sea
The Coral Sea () is a marginal sea of the South Pacific off the northeast coast of Australia, and classified as an interim Australian bioregion. The Coral Sea extends down the Australian northeast coast. Most of it is protected by the Fre ...
near
Lucinda, at the southern end of the
Hinchinbrook Channel
The Hinchinbrook Channel is a channel between the Australian mainland and Hinchinbrook Island. It runs for 44 km between Oyster Point, just south of Cardwell, and Lucinda in Far North Queensland. The Aboriginal name for the channel is ...
, north of
Townsville
Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 180,820 as of June 2018, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland; it is unofficially considered its capital. Estimated resident population, 3 ...
. The river descends over its
course.
[
The Herbert River tributaries include the Blunder, Sunday and Cameron Creeks, which all rise in the Cardwell Range and drain the northern portion of the river's ]catchment area
In human geography, a catchment area is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...
, upstream of the Herbert River Falls
The Herbert River Falls is a plunge waterfall on the Herbert River that is located in the UNESCO World Heritagelisted Wet Tropics in the Far North region of Queensland, Australia.
Location and features
The falls are located on the northern b ...
. Further south the catchment is drained by the Nanyeta (Return) and Rudd Creeks, which flow out of the Great Dividing Range west of Mount Garnet
Mount Garnet is a rural town and locality in the Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Mount Garnet had a population of 430 people.
Geography
Various small communities populate the area around Mount Garnet. These include Tableland ...
and from the Forty Mile Scrub area. In total, the river has a catchment of .
The Wallaman Falls
The Wallaman Falls, a cascade and horsetail waterfall on the Stony Creek, is located in the UNESCO World Heritagelisted Wet Tropics in the locality of Wallaman, Shire of Hinchinbrook in the northern region of Queensland, Australia. The wat ...
on Stony Creek, another tributary of the Herbert, are Australia's tallest single-drop waterfall. Other waterfalls on the river include Herbert River Falls, Blencoe Falls
The Blencoe Falls is a segmented waterfall on the Blencoe Creek, located in Kirrama, Tablelands Region, in Far North Queensland, Australia.
Location and features
The falls are situated in the Girringun National Park approximately north of ...
and Millstream Falls
The Millstream Falls ( Aboriginal: ''Yindinji''), a tiered plunge waterfall on The Millstream, is located in the UNESCO World Heritagelisted Wet Tropics in the Far North region of Queensland, Australia.
Location and features
The Millstream ...
.
Heavy rainfall causes the river level and speed of flow to rise very quickly, especially in the lower flood plain areas around Ingham where rainfall of up to over a few days may occur during peak wet season
The wet season (sometimes called the Rainy season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. It is the time of year where the majority of a country's or region's annual precipitation occurs. Generally, the sea ...
. Floodwater up to depths of above ground level occurs in low parts of the town, requiring the evacuation of residents and their property from low-lying areas. The river experienced significant flooding during the 2010–11 Queensland floods
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
.
People and land use
''Warrgamay
The Warrgamay people, also spelt Warakamai, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the state of Queensland.
Language
Their language, Warrgamay, is now extinct. It was a variety of Dyirbalic, and appears to be composed of three distinct dialec ...
'' (also known as ''Waragamai'', ''Wargamay'', ''Wargamaygan'', ''Biyay'', and ''Warakamai'') is an Australian Aboriginal language
The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...
in North Queensland
North Queensland or the Northern Region is the northern part of the Australian state of Queensland that lies just south of Far North Queensland. Queensland is a massive state, larger than many countries, and its tropical northern part has been ...
. The language region includes the Herbert River area, Ingham, Hawkins Creek, Long Pocket, Herbert Vale, Niagara Vale, Yamanic Creek, Herbert Gorge, Cardwell, Hinchinbrook Island
Hinchinbrook Island (or Pouandai to the Biyaygiri people) is an island in the Cassowary Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. It lies east of Cardwell and north of Lucinda, separated from the north-eastern coast of Queensland by the narrow Hi ...
and the adjacent mainland.
'' Warungu'' (also known as ''Warrungu'', ''Warrongo'', and ''Waroongoo''.'')'' is an Australian Aboriginal language in North Queensland
North Queensland or the Northern Region is the northern part of the Australian state of Queensland that lies just south of Far North Queensland. Queensland is a massive state, larger than many countries, and its tropical northern part has been ...
. The language region includes areas from the Upper Herbert River to Mount Garnet
Mount Garnet is a rural town and locality in the Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Mount Garnet had a population of 430 people.
Geography
Various small communities populate the area around Mount Garnet. These include Tableland ...
.
The catchment area holds a population of about 18,000, 75% of whom dwell in the lower flood plain area.
The river's upper region is used mainly for cattle grazing, while the lower Herbert River floodplain is given over to sugar cane production. The middle reaches of the catchment include National Parks
A national park is a natural park in use for conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual ...
, State Forests
A state forest or national forest is a forest that is administered or protected by some agency of a sovereign state, sovereign or federated state, or territory (country subdivision), territory.
Background
The precise application of the terms va ...
and sections of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area
The Wet Tropics of Queensland World Heritage Site consists of approximately 8,940 km2 of Australian wet tropical forests growing along the north-east Queensland portion of the Great Dividing Range. The Wet Tropics of Queensland meets all f ...
.
Parts of the river, especially the Herbert River Gorge stretch, are used for kayak
A kayak is a small, narrow watercraft which is typically propelled by means of a double-bladed paddle. The word kayak originates from the Greenlandic word ''qajaq'' ().
The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each se ...
ing and white water rafting
Rafting and whitewater rafting are recreational outdoor activities which use an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other body of water. This is often done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water. Dealing with risk is often a ...
. The Herbert River is one of Australia's two finest extended whitewater journeys, the other the Franklin River
The Franklin River is a major perennial river located in the Central Highlands and western regions of Tasmania, Australia. The river is located in the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park at the mid northern area of the Tasmanian Wilder ...
in Tasmania.
The second season of the U.S. reality television series, '' Survivor'', was filmed on the "Goshen" cattle station in the upper Herbert River region, near the Blencoe Falls and Herbert River Gorge.
The Herbert, together with the Tully and the Burdekin
The Shire of Burdekin is a local government area located in North Queensland, Australia in the Dry Tropics region. The district is located between Townsville and Bowen in the delta of the Burdekin River.
It covers an area of , and has existe ...
rivers, were part of the proposed Bradfield Scheme
The Bradfield Scheme, a proposed Australian water diversion scheme, is an inland irrigation project that was designed to irrigate and drought-proof much of the western Queensland interior, as well as large areas of South Australia. It was devis ...
to divert the upper reaches of the three rivers west of the Great Dividing Range and into the Thomson River designed to irrigate and drought-proof much of the western Queensland
Western Queensland encompasses the three western regions in the Australian state of Queensland:
* North West Queensland, often known as Gulf Country;
* Central West Queensland; and
* South West Queensland.
History
Karuwali (also known as ...
interior, as well as large areas of South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
. The Scheme was proposed in 1938 and abandoned in 1947.
See also
* List of rivers of Queensland
This is a list of rivers of Australia. Rivers are ordered alphabetically, by state. The same river may be found in more than one state as many rivers cross state borders.
Longest rivers nationally
Longest river by state or territory
Althoug ...
References
External links
About the Herbert River Catchment
*
*
*
{{Authority control
Rivers of Far North Queensland
North Queensland
Floods in Queensland
Bodies of water of the Coral Sea