The Steavenson River, sometimes incorrectly referred to as Steavensons River, a minor inland
perennial river
A perennial stream is a stream that has continuous flow of surface water throughout the year in at least parts of its catchment during seasons of normal rainfall, Water Supply Paper 494. as opposed to one whose flow is intermittent. In the abs ...
of the
Goulburn
Goulburn ( ) is a regional city in the Southern Tablelands of the Australian state of New South Wales, approximately south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Canberra. It was proclaimed as Australia's first inland city through letters pate ...
Broken catchment, part of the
Murray-Darling basin, is located in the lower
South Eastern Highlands
The South Eastern Highlands is an interim Australian bioregion in eastern Australia, that spans parts of the states and territories of New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory, and Victoria. The bioregion comprises and is approxi ...
bioregion
A bioregion is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a biogeographic realm, but larger than an ecoregion or an ecosystem, in the World Wide Fund for Nature classification scheme. There is also an attempt to use the ...
and
Northern Country/North Central regions of the
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 ...
n state of
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
. The headwaters of the Steavenson River rise on the northwestern slopes of the Yarra Ranges, below Mount Edgar and descend to flow into the
Acheron River
The Acheron (; grc, Ἀχέρων ''Acheron'' or Ἀχερούσιος ''Acherousios''; ell, Αχέροντας ''Acherontas'') is a river located in the Epirus region of northwest Greece. It is long, and its drainage area is . Its source is ...
near .
Location and features
The river rises below Mount Edgar on the northwestern slopes of the Yarra Ranges, 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 ...
, within the
Yarra Ranges National Park
Yarra Ranges National Park is located in the Central Highlands of Australia's southeastern state Victoria, 107 km northeast of Melbourne. Established in 1995 and managed by the statutory authority Parks Victoria, the park features a carbon-ric ...
. The flows generally north by west, through rugged national park as the river descends, then north, joined by three tributaries including the
Taggerty River
The Taggerty River, a minor inland perennial river of the Goulburn Broken catchment, part of the Murray-Darling basin, is located in the lower South Eastern Highlands bioregion and Northern Country/North Central regions of the Australian sta ...
, before reaching its
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 ...
with the Acheron River near the settlement of Buxton. The river descends over its
course.
[
The river is crossed by the ]Maroondah Highway
Maroondah Highway (also known as Whitehorse Road from Deepdene, Victoria, Deepdene to Mitcham, Victoria, Mitcham) is a major east–west thoroughfare in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, and a highway connecting the north-eastern fringes of Mel ...
south of Buxton. An anabranch
An anabranch is a section of a river or stream that diverts from the main channel or stem of the watercourse and rejoins the main stem downstream. Local anabranches can be the result of small islands in the watercourse. In larger anabranches, th ...
of the river, called ''Little Steavenson River'', splits from the main river and reaches its confluence with the Acheron River, also near the settlement of Buxton.[
Steavenson Falls, a horsetail waterfall located in the upper reaches of the river, descends over five drops, the last having a clear drop of more than and is situated approximately east of .]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 ...
of the river was destroyed by the Black Saturday bushfires
The Black Saturday bushfires were a series of bushfires that either ignited or were already burning across the Australian state of Victoria on and around Saturday, 7 February 2009, and were among Australia's all-time worst bushfire disasters. T ...
that passed through the area on 7 February 2009, destroying almost all of the man made infrastructure and causing extensive damage to the forest in the area.
Etymology
In 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 ...
, the river is claimed to be named ''Nur-ro-nur-ro'', with no defined meaning for the name. That claim is disputed.[
It is believed that the lower reaches of the Steavenson River, from the confluence of the Taggerty River with the Steavenson River, at the locale of Vic Oak, until the river mouth near Buxton, may have been initially named as the Taggerty River, until the Steavenson was officially named.]
See also
*
References
{{Authority control
Goulburn Broken catchment
Rivers of Hume (region)
Tributaries of the Goulburn River