The Tamar River, officially kanamaluka / River Tamar, is a

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

located in northern

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

, Australia. Despite being named a river, the waterway is a

brackish Brackish water, sometimes termed brack water, is water occurring in a natural environment that has more salinity than freshwater, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater (salt water) and fresh water together, as in estuari ...

and

tidal Tidal is the adjectival form of tide. Tidal may also refer to: * ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple * Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim * TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music * Tidal (servic ...

estuary over its entire length.

Etymology

The Tamar River was named after the

River Tamar The Tamar (; ) is a river in south west England that forms most of the border between Devon (to the east) and Cornwall (to the west). A large part of the valley of the Tamar is protected as the Tamar Valley National Landscape (an Area of Outsta ...

South West England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of the nine official regions of England, regions of England in the United Kingdom. Additionally, it is one of four regions that altogether make up Southern England. South West England con ...

by Colonel William Paterson in December 1804.

Location and features

Formed by the

confluence In geography, a confluence (also ''conflux'') occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel (geography), channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main ...

of the North Esk and South Esk rivers at , kanamaluka / River Tamar flows generally north towards its mouth at Low Head, north of the settlement George Town and into the

Bass Strait Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The ...

via

Port Dalrymple George Town (palawa kani: ''kinimathatakinta'') is a large town in north-east Tasmania, on the eastern bank of the mouth of the Tamar River. The Australian Bureau of Statistics records the George Town Municipal Area had a population of 6,764 as ...

. kanamaluka / River Tamar has several minor tributaries including the Supply River.

Low Head Lighthouse Low Head Lighthouse is in Low Head, Tasmania, about north of George Town on the east side of the mouth of the Tamar River. It was the third lighthouse to be constructed in Australia, and it is also Australia's oldest continuously used pilot ...

is located at the tip of a peninsula on the eastern side of the river mouth. The only full crossing of the river is the

Batman Bridge The Batman Bridge is a modern road bridge that carries the Batman Highway across the Tamar River, between Whirlpool Reach, Hillwood at its eastern end and Sidmouth / Deviot midpoint at its western end, in north Tasmania, Australia. The bridge ...

in the relatively remote area of

Sidmouth Sidmouth () is a town on the English Channel in Devon, South West England, southeast of Exeter. With a population of 13,258 in 2021, it is a tourist resort and a gateway to the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. A large part of the town has ...

, approximately halfway along the river. The Tamar has perennial issues with silting, contributing to its slow decline in commercial navigational use. This has required occasional dredging operations. A scheme enacted between the 1920s and 1970s planned to partially dam the river and slow the flow around the western side of Tamar Island and speed up the flow around the eastern side (the main channel) by sinking 14 boats to disrupt water flow. The success of this project is debated.

Navigation and fishing

The Port of Launceston is now used very little in comparison to historically, and the

SeaCat Tasmania HSC ''Cat'' is a high speed catamaran ferry built by Incat for Sea Containers in 1990. It has been owned by Sea and Sun Maritime Co since 2014. The vessel is currently operated by Seajets. ''Sea Speed Jet'' was the first 74-metre wave pierci ...

ferry no longer docks at George Town. Despite this, the Tamar still is used for commercial

shipping Freight transport, also referred to as freight forwarding, is the physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo. The term shipping originally referred to transport by sea but in American English, it has been ...

, with industries at George Town including aluminium smelters as well as for sightseeing cruises. The last 10 kilometres of the Tamar River estuary are generally smooth and sheltered waters, depending on tidal and weather conditions. The

Clarence Point Clarence Point is a locality in northern Tasmania about southwest of George Town across the Tamar River. Most of its population is settled along the riverbank. Clarence Point is also the name of the regional area that includes the village, whic ...

boat ramp has picnic amenities, toilets, and a pontoon on the western side. The more wind exposed basic boat ramp at Kelso is a few kilometres further north. George Town, a significant port town, lies on the eastern side and has amenities nearby. The Low Head boat ramp is also on the eastern side, just past Pilot Bay, several kilometres further north. Tamar King George Whiting 55cm

References

External links

History of the Tamar River Conservation Area
Bass Strait {{Tasmania-river-stub

Etymology

Location and features

Navigation and fishing

See also

References

External links