Home > Yarra River

The river's source is a series of swamps on Mount Baw Baw. The upper reaches are located within the Yarra Ranges National Park, a thickly forested subalpine park, and are entirely closed-off to all except the employees of Melbourne Water . The park features extensive stands of mountain ash, a very tall eucalypt, tree ferns, as well as patches of remnant rainforest.

The Upper Yarra Dam , one of a number of dams in the Yarra Catchment that supply most of Melbourne's water, is the furthest upstream point on the river visible to the general public (though the dam itself is closed off).

The first settlement the still-young river passes through is the small town of Reefton, but most of the river is surrounded by hills covered temperate forest until the subalpine resort town of Warburton. The Woods Point Road follows the river through this section.

Downstream of Warburton, the Yarra Valley gradually opens out and farms begin to appear, including beef and dairy farms, and by the town of Woori Yallock and the river's turn north increasingly large areas are covered by vineyards, forming the Yarra Valley wine region.

At Healesville, the river turns west again and the stream bed becomes increasingly silty, reducing the clarity of the water, and by the commuter town of Yarra Glen it begins to take on the brownish color that the lower reaches are known for.

The river enters Melbourne's suburbs proper at Chirnside Park, but virtually all the river's length is surrounded by parkland, much retaining (or having been replanted with) extensive native vegetation. A bicycle and walking trail begins at Warrandyte. The river is used extensively for kayaking at Templestowe, and canoes can often be seen throughout the suburban section. Whilst the water is not particularly clear, its quality is sufficient for edible fish to swim within it. Some small hobby farms are located in the floodplain area of the river, surprisingly close to central Melbourne and almost completely surrounded by suburbs.

Heidelberg formed the home of the Heidelberg SchoolThe Heidelberg School was an Australian art movement of the late 19th century. The name refers to the rural area near Melbourne where practitioners of the style found their subjects, though usage expanded to cover other Australian artists working in simil, widely considered the first European painters to accurately capture the Australian landscape and its distinctive features. The walking trail features placards displaying some of their paintings at the settings they were actually painted. Some features remain clearly recognisible.

Below Dight's Falls at Yarra Bend in inner Melbourne, the river becomes increasingly estuarine as it passes along the southern side of the central business district. This area forms the venue for the annual "Moomba" festival, which notably features an annual water skiingWater skiing is a sport and recreational activity invented in Lake City, Minnesota in 1922 by Ralph Samuelson and is popular in many countries around the world where appropriate conditions exist an expanse of water unaffected by wave motion. Rivers, lakes competition which attracts a huge crowd. Many of Melbourne's private schools, located close to the river, train their rowingGB coxless pair of Toby Garbett & Rick Dunn at Henley Royal Regatta 2004. Rowing is propelling a boat by means of oars. The purpose can be transportation, recreation or sport. In the United States as a high school or collegiate sport it is sometimes known crews on it.

Most of the inner metropolitan section of the river remains contaminated from industrial and domestic waste dumping dating from Melbourne's early settlement. The worst of this was eliminated through the 20th century, and since the 1980's a concerted effort to clean up the river has reduced pollution markedly, though not enough to permit swimming below Dight's Falls at present.

The lower reaches feature a number of boat cruises, using especially low-roof boats to go under the many bridges across this section of the Yarra.

The river flows into Port Phillip Bay, the site being extensively altered as part of the Port of Melbourne, Australia's busiest seaport.

The total catchment area is approximately 4000 square kilometreA kilometre ( American spelling: kilometer (symbol: km is a unit of length equal to 1000 metres. It is approximately equal to 0. 621 miles, 1094 yards or 3281 feet. Slang terms for kilometre include " klick" (or "click") and "kay". Click" is also used fors.

Some of the Yarra's major tributaries include the Plenty River , and the Merri CreekThe Merri Creek is a waterway in Melbourne, Victoria. It begins in Wallan (north of Melbourne) and follows a southerly route, eventually joining with the Yarra River which flows into Port Phillip. Malcom Creek, Aitken Creek, and Edgars Creek are tributari.