The Mortlock River is a
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 ...
in the
Wheatbelt region of
Western Australia
Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...
.
Course and features
The headwaters of the river rise near Belmunging then flow in a northerly direction, crossed by the Goldfields Road and continuing in a north-westerly direction to finally flow parallel to the Northam York Road and crossed by the
Great Eastern Highway
Great Eastern Highway is a road that links the Western Australian capital of Perth with the city of Kalgoorlie. A key route for road vehicles accessing the eastern Wheatbelt (Western Australia), Wheatbelt and the Goldfields-Esperance, Goldfie ...
. The river is joined by three minor
tributaries
A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream ('' main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which the ...
: Mortlock River North, Mortlock River East and Meenaar South Creek. The river discharges into the
Avon River, just west of
Northam. The Mortlock descends over its
course.
[
The river is saline and delivers the most salt (approximately per year) into the Avon River.
]
Name
The river was named after the surveyor
Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. These points are usually on the ...
Henry Mortlock Ommanney in the 1830s. Ommanney visited the river during an expedition through the area in 1835.
See also
* List of watercourses in Western Australia
References
{{Rivers of Western Australia
Avon River (Western Australia)