Murray Valley Hwy

This trek follows the Murray River, also known as the ‘Mighty Murray’, which is Australia’s largest river measuring at 2,575kms in length. The Murray River begins its journey by water draining from some of Australia’s highest peaks in the Snowy Mountains. It flows west through the Riverina Plains, heading past Mildura where it bends south at the historic township of Morgan and then coming to an end into Lake Alexandrina in South Australia.

This trek not only takes in the natural beauty of the Murray River and its surrounds, but also the historic beauty with the many towns along the way. Towns like Echuca which had the biggest inland port in Australia, Swan Hill which has an authentically recreated 19th century Mallee town and Mildura - which has abundant significance to Aboriginal culture as well as explorers such as Captain Charles Sturt who named the Murray and Darling Rivers.

As this trek traverses on public highways (Sturt Highway and Murray Valley Highway), no permits are needed to follow the Murray Valley Hwy trek.

Other things to do, include visiting: Ulupna Island, Barmah Forest, Tyntynder Homestead (the first brick veneer building in Australia), Vinifera River Murray Reserve, Nyah State Forest (almost entirely River Red Gum with a groundcover of native and introduced grasses), The Major Mitchell Trail, Passage Camp, Robinvale, Hattah-Kulkyne National Park, Murray Kulkyne National Park, Karadoc Beaches, Red Cliffs Scenic Reserve, Kings Billabong Wildlife Reserve and the historic Psyche Bend Pumphouse which is the oldest intact irrigation station in Australia.

Although there are many fuel outlets along this route for filling up your vehicle, this trek is nearly 600kms long so please make sure you carry enough fuel between major towns. Accommodation is plentiful and most towns will provide either caravan parks or motels if you wish to stay overnight. Your vehicle should also be in good working order before undertaking a long journey such as this trek.

Due to the close proximity of the Murray River, there is a mixture of dry, arid country and fertile, irrigated land, which makes a rather interesting drive. The route is relatively good and there are many long straight sections on flatter terrain. As you journey from Yarrawonga, the timbered countryside diminishes and turns to more dry and arid conditions as you head closer towards Echuca and beyond.

Some of the Fauna you may encounter especially in the Murray River parklands region are predominantly kangaroos, emus and koalas. There are over 200 species of birds such as the Australian White Ibis and the Straw-necked Ibis. You may even be lucky to see a Peregrine Falcon flying high in the sky.

Gunbower Island State Forest, near Cohuna occupies around 130kms of river frontage and features magnificent Red Gum and Box forests covering about 80 percent of the 50km long island. This amazing floodplain between the Murray and Gunbower Creek features a large variety of waterbirds.

The Murray River region is rich with cultural and English/European historical significance. Local indigenous people had lived along the Murray River for more than 10,000 years. This is evident in some shell middens (kitchen hearths), burials and scar trees that you may discover while exploring around. Please respect these Australian heritage sites, which are protected by law.

One of the greatest explorations of this region in Australian history belongs to Captain Charles Napier Sturt. He was an English explorer who led several expeditions into the interior of the continent, starting from both Sydney and later from Adelaide. As he was searching to determine if there was an ‘inland sea’, his expeditions traced several of the westward-flowing rivers, establishing that they all merge into the one river, which he subsequently named ‘Murray River’.