The De Grey 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 w ...

located in the

Pilbara The Pilbara () is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal peoples; its ancient landscapes; the red earth; and its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore. It is also a g ...

region of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. It was named on 16 August 1861 by the explorer and surveyor Francis Gregory after

Thomas de Grey, 2nd Earl de Grey Thomas Philip de Grey, 2nd Earl de Grey, 3rd Baron Grantham, 6th Baron Lucas, KG, PC, FRS (born Robinson, later Weddell; 8 December 178114 November 1859), styled as The Hon. Thomas Robinson until 1786 and as Lord Grantham from 1786 to 1833, of ...

, who was at the time the president of the Royal Geographical Society. The river rises south of Callawa at the confluence of the

Oakover Oakover is a historic building in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, Himchal Pradesh, India. One of the earliest houses built in Shimla, it is the official residence of Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh. History A British era building Oakover prev ...

and the Nullagine rivers and flows in a west-north-westerly direction eventually discharging into the Indian Ocean via Breaker Inlet about 80 km north-east of

Port Hedland A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ha ...

. Its stream bed is 100 to 130 metres wide, dry throughout most of the year . The shore's land is rich in grass and fertile, featuring trees. The river flows through many semi-permanent pools of water on the way to the coast, including Yukerakine Pool, Muccanoo Pool, Talyirina Pool, Wardoomoondener Pool and Triangle Pool. The river has eleven

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 drainag ...

, including the Oakover River, Nullagine River, Coongan River, East Strelley River, Shaw River, Miningarra Creek, Egg Creek and Kookenyia Creek.

References

Further reading