| Shoalhaven River | |
|---|---|
 Shoalhaven River viewed from Hanging Rock Lookout inNowra, December 2024. | |
  Location of the Shoalhaven Rivermouth inNew South Wales | |
| Etymology | "Shoals Haven" (Bass in 1797).[1] |
| Location | |
| Country | Australia |
| State | New South Wales |
| Region | Sydney Basin (IBRA),Southern Tablelands,South Coast |
| LGAs | Queanbeyan–Palerang,Shoalhaven |
| Cities | Nowra,Bomaderry |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Euranbene Mountain,Great Dividing Range |
| • location | west of Bendethera |
| • coordinates | 35°58′15″S149°38′3″E / 35.97083°S 149.63417°E /-35.97083; 149.63417 |
| • elevation | 864 m (2,835 ft) |
| Mouth | Tasman Sea,Pacific Ocean |
• location | Shoalhaven Heads |
• coordinates | 34°51′S150°44′E / 34.850°S 150.733°E /-34.850; 150.733 |
• elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
| Length | 327 km (203 mi) |
| Basin size | 7,086 km2 (2,736 mi2) |
| Discharge | |
| • location | Near mouth |
| • average | 63.1 m3/s (1,990 GL/a)[2] |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Kangaroo River |
| • right | Mongarlowe River,Corang River,Endrick River |
| Islands | Pig (Burraga),Comerong |
| [3] | |
TheShoalhaven River is aperennial river that rises from theSouthern Tablelands and flows into an open maturewave dominatedbarrier estuary[4] nearNowra on theSouth Coast ofNew South Wales, Australia.
The Shoalhaven River rises on the eastern side of theGreat Dividing Range, below Euranbene Mountain, about 350 kilometres (220 mi) southwest ofSydney. The upper reaches of the river flow northwards through an upland pastoral district near the town ofBraidwood. The river works its way down into a remote canyon east ofGoulburn and emerges into the coastal lowlands atNowra in theShoalhaven district, where it is spanned by theNowra Bridge. The river is joined by thirty-fourtributaries, including theMongarlowe,Corang,Endrick, andKangaroo rivers, and descends 864 metres (2,835 ft) over its 327-kilometre (203 mi)course.[3]
The estuary has two entrances, approximately 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) apart, that flow into the Shoalhaven Bight within theTasman Sea of thePacific Ocean. The southern entrance is located at Crookhaven Heads and is permanently open. The Shoalhaven River flows south via Berrys Canal toGreenwell Point, where it is joined by theCrookhaven River and then flows east past Orient Point into thebight, north ofCulburra.[5] The Berrys Canal between the Shoalhaven and the Crookhaven was constructed in June 1822 by convicts overseen byHamilton Hume under the direction ofAlexander Berry to facilitate ship transport to theoriginal European settlement located in the region.[6] The construction of the canal formed Comerong Island. The canal was dug using own hand tools, and was the first land navigable canal in Australia. Berrys Canal remains one of two navigable canals in New South Wales, the other being theAlexandra Canal.
The northern entrance is located south ofShoalhaven Heads, and is open intermittently, at times of peak flow and during flood events.[5]
Tallowa Dam is the only major dam on the Shoalhaven, and is a part of theShoalhaven Scheme. It impounds the river's lower reaches to formLake Yarrunga and part of Sydney's water supply. Some water is pumped out of the lake and over theSouthern Highlands intoLake Burragorang. Proposals for a much larger water storage atWelcome Reef on the upper Shoalhaven have been shelved.[citation needed]
The Shoalhaven River and its main tributary the Kangaroo River were once renowned as anAustralian bass fishery. Unfortunately, Tallowa Dam has been a potent barrier to migratory native fish with estuarine/marine juvenile stages, blocking species including Australian bass from more than 80% of their former range in the Shoalhaven system. Recent stockings of hatchery-bred Bass in Lake Yarrunga are an attempt to remediate the situation.[citation needed] A fishway for Tallowa Dam was completed in August 2009.[7] This fishway is designed to allow for the movement of bass and other native fish over the dam.[8] Lake Yarrunga has also suffered the illegal introduction of highly damagingEuropean carp, which are now present in high densities.
The traditional custodians of the land are Jerrinja tribal peoples the surrounding Shoalhaven River, in its lower reaches, are theAboriginal peoples of the lower catchment are Jerrinja tribal peoples which are the traditional custodians of the Shoalhaven .[9] Some of the culturally important Aboriginal places in the Shoalhaven includeCoolangatta Mountain, Bundarwa (Beecroft Headland), Cambewarra Mountain,Didthul orPigeon House Mountain,Kangaroo Valley,Burrill Lake, and Murramarang Aboriginal Area and its environs.[10][11]
The upper part of the Shoalhaven river, in the district around modern-day Braidwood, is the traditional land ofWalbanga people.[12]
The explorer and navigatorGeorge Bass found the entrance to the Shoalhaven River during his whaleboat voyage down the south coast of New South Wales in 1797. He gave the name Shoals Haven to the river (now known as the Crookhaven River) because of the shoals of mud and sand he found at the river mouth.[1][13]
Approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) west of Nowra are a series of properties along the banks of the Shoalhaven River that were a gift to the people of Australia fromArthur Boyd, his wife, Yvonne, and theBoyd family. Entrusted to theBundanon Trust, along with further gifts by Boyd, including copyright of all of his artwork, these properties provide an environment that promotes visual arts, writing, music and other performing arts, and the promotion of education and research in the arts.[14]
The river crossings, from its headwaters to its river mouth, include:
Historically, there was once a ford crossing at the former village ofLarbert.[18]
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Rivers of the Southern Rivers catchment,New South Wales, Australia | |
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| Illawarra | |
| Shoalhaven | |
| Eurobodalla | |
| Far South Coast | |
| Snowy River | |
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| Towns & Townships |
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| Local government areas | |
| National parks | |
| Rivers and other waterbodies | |
| International | |
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| National | |
