The Howqua River, a minor inland

perennial river A stream is a continuous body of water, body of surface water Current (stream), flowing within the stream bed, bed and bank (geography), banks of a channel (geography), channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a strea ...

of the

Goulburn Goulburn ( ) is a regional city in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia, approximately south-west of Sydney and north-east of Canberra. It was proclaimed as Australia's first inland city through letters patent by Queen Victor ...

Broken catchment, part of the Murray-Darling basin, is located in the Alpine region of the

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n state of Victoria. The headwaters of the Howqua River rise below

Mount Howitt Mount Howitt, also known as ''Toot-buck-nulluck'' in the Gunai language, is a mountain in Victoria, Australia, named for Alfred William Howitt. Located in the Wonangatta Moroka Unit of the Alpine National Park approximately 170 km north-e ...

in the western slopes of the

Victorian Alps The Victorian Alps, also known locally as the High Country, is a large mountain system in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria. Occupying the majority of eastern Victoria, it is the southwestern half of the Australian Alps (the othe ...

, and descend to flow into the

Goulburn River The Goulburn River, a major inland perennial river of the Goulburn Broken catchment, part of the Murray-Darling basin, is located in the Alpine, Northern Country/North Central, and Southern Riverina regions of the Australian state of Victor ...

within

Lake Eildon The Eildon Dam is a rock and earth-fill embankment dam with a controlled spillway, located on the Goulburn River between the regional towns of and within Lake Eildon National Park, in the Alpine region of Victoria, Australia. The dam's pur ...

Location and features

The river rises below Mount Howitt on the western slopes of the Victorian Alps, within the

Alpine National Park The Alpine National Park is a national park located in the Central Highlands and Alpine regions of Victoria, Australia. The national park is located northeast of Melbourne. It is the largest National Park in Victoria, and covers much of the hi ...

in the

Shire of Mansfield The Shire of Mansfield is a Local government areas of Victoria, local government area in the Hume (region), Hume region of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, located in the north-east part of the state. It covers an area of and in Augus ...

. The river flow generally west, joined by five minor tributaries, before reaching its

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 ...

with the Goulburn River within Lake Eildon, created by the Eildon Weir. The river descends over its

course Course may refer to: Directions or navigation * Course (navigation), the path of travel * Course (orienteering), a series of control points visited by orienteers during a competition, marked with red/white flags in the terrain, and corresponding ...

Cultural references

The Howqua valley was seasonally occupied by the

Taungurung The Taungurung people, also spelled ''Daung Wurrung'', are Aboriginal people who are one of the Kulin nations in present-day Victoria, Australia. They consist of nine clans whose traditional language is the Taungurung language. Their Country ...

people with the valley being a major route for trade or war between tribes in the area. The Howqua River valley contains a number of archaeological sites of significance including at least two quarry sites for greenstone, an exceptionally hard rock used for stone axes, spears and other cutting tools which the Taungurung traded with other tribes. The character of Billy Slim in

Nevil Shute Nevil Shute Norway (17 January 189912 January 1960) was an English novelist and aeronautical engineer who spent his later years in Australia. He used his full name in his engineering career and Nevil Shute as his pen name to protect his enginee ...

's 1952 novel '' The Far Country'' was based on Fred Fry, a notable fly fisherman, who constructed several huts along the Howqua River and eked out a quiet existence in the river valley. The Howqua River was one of just thirteen locations worldwide featured on the

fly fishing Fly fishing is an angling technique that uses an ultra-lightweight lure called an artificial fly, which typically mimics small invertebrates such as flying and aquatic insects to attract and catch fish. Because the mass of the fly lure is in ...

documentary television series ''

A River Somewhere ''A River Somewhere'' is an Australian Documentary film, documentary television series originally broadcast by ABC Television (Australian TV network), ABC TV in 1997 and 1998. It was produced by Working Dog Productions, and was hosted by Tom Gle ...

''.

Etymology

In the Aboriginal

Woiwurrung The Woiwurrung, also spelt Woi-wurrung, Woi Wurrung, Woiwurrong, Woiworung, and Wuywurung, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin alliance. The Woiwurrung people's territory in Central Victoria ex ...

and

languages, the river is named ''Pyerlite'', with no clearly defined meaning. There are four possible origins of the river's current name: firstly, after John "Howka" Hunter (1820–68), a pastoralist; secondly, a

portmanteau In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed by combining the meanings, and parts of the sounds, of two or more words together.

name from Mount Howitt, where the river rises, and ''aqua''; thirdly, after Howqua, a popular brand of Chinese tea in the early nineteenth century; and fourthly, after Akin Howqua (Ah Kin Wowqua), a Chinese surveyor and early resident of Melbourne.

References

{{Authority control Goulburn Broken catchment Rivers of Hume (region) Tributaries of the Murray River Tributaries of the Goulburn River Alpine National Park

Location and features

Cultural references

Etymology

See also

References