Hastings River (Birpai: Doongang [1] ), an open and trained intermediate wave dominated barrier estuary, [4] is located in the Northern Tablelands and Mid North Coast districts of New South Wales, Australia.
Hastings River (Birpai: Doongang [1] ), an open and trained intermediate wave dominated barrier estuary, [4] is located in the Northern Tablelands and Mid North Coast districts of New South Wales, Australia.
Hastings River rises in the Great Dividing Range, southwest of Kemps Pinnacle, in the area surrounding Oxley Wild Rivers National Park and Werrikimbe National Park and flows generally south, southeast and east, joined by seven tributaries including the Tobins, Forbes, Ellenborough, Pappinbarra and Thone rivers, before reaching its mouth, flowing into the Tasman Sea of the South Pacific Ocean, at Port Macquarie. The river descends 1,040 metres (3,410 ft) over its 180 kilometres (110 mi) course. [3]
The course of the river flows adjacent to the settlements Ellenborough, Long Flat, Beechwood, Wauchope and Port Macquarie. The Oxley Highway is generally aligned with the middle and lower reaches of the river. West of Port Macquarie, the Pacific Highway crosses the Hastings River.
The Hastings River has been inhabited by Birpai Aboriginal people for thousands of years, who knew it as Doongang.
The river was first charted by European explorers in 1818, after being sighted by John Oxley. He named the river the Hastings River for the then Governor-General of India, Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings. [1]
On 19 November 2002, two anglers found the dismembered body of murdered Sydney drug dealer, Terry Falconer. Investigations revealed that Falconer had died three days beforehand, after his corpse had been cut up and dumped in the Hastings River by Anthony Perish and his criminal gang associates. [5] [6]
The River flooded in March 2021 during a severe weather event affecting much of New South Wales. [7]
The Hastings River gives its name to the Hastings River wine region and to an endangered species of mammal, the Hastings River Mouse (Pseudomys oralis).
Fishing opportunities on the Hastings River exist for freshwater bass and catfish in the upper reaches to estuarine species such as bream, flathead and luderick near the river mouth.
John Joseph William Molesworth Oxley was an explorer and surveyor of Australia in the early period of British colonisation. He served as Surveyor General of New South Wales and is perhaps best known for his two expeditions into the interior of New South Wales and his exploration of the Tweed River and the Brisbane River in what is now the state of Queensland.
Port Macquarie, locally nicknamed Port, is a coastal city in the local government area of Port Macquarie-Hastings. It is located on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, about 390 km (242 mi) north of Sydney, and 570 km (354 mi) south of Brisbane. The city is located on the Tasman Sea coast, at the mouth of the Hastings River, and at the eastern end of the Oxley Highway (B56). The city with its suburbs had a population of 47,973 in June 2018.
The Hunter River is a major river in New South Wales, Australia. The Hunter River rises in the Liverpool Range and flows generally south and then east, reaching the Tasman Sea at Newcastle, the second largest city in New South Wales and a major harbour port. Its lower reaches form an open and trained mature wave dominated barrier estuary.
The Macleay River is a river that spans the Northern Tablelands and Mid North Coast districts of New South Wales, Australia.
The Clyde River is an open intermediate tide dominated drowned valley estuary, or perennial river that flows into the Tasman Sea at Batemans Bay, located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia.
The Moruya River is an open and trained mature wave dominated barrier estuary or tidal river is located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. In its upper freshwater reaches, the river is known as the Deua River.
The Shoalhaven River is a perennial river that rises from the Southern Tablelands and flows into an open mature wave dominated barrier estuary near Nowra on the South Coast of New South Wales, Australia.
The Tweed River is a river situated in the Northern Rivers district of New South Wales, Australia. From the middle reaches of its course, the state boundary between New South Wales and Queensland is located approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north.
Manning River, an open and trained mature wave dominated barrier estuary, is located in the Northern Tablelands and Mid North Coast districts of New South Wales, Australia. It is the only double delta river in the southern hemisphere in which there are two permanent entrances to the river, one at Old Bar and another at Harrington, and is famously one of only two rivers in the world to have permanent multiple entrances with the other being the Nile river in Egypt.
Wauchope is a town in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. It is within the boundaries of the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council area. Wauchope is inland on the Hastings River and the Oxley Highway 19 km (12 mi) west of Port Macquarie. The town is 383 km (238 mi) north of the state capital Sydney.
Myall River, an open semi-mature brackish freshwater barrier estuary of the Mid-Coast Council system, is located in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia.
Bellinger River, an open and trained mature wave dominated, barrier estuary, is located in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia.
Karuah River, an open semi-mature tide dominated drowned valley estuary is located in the Mid North Coast and Hunter regions of New South Wales, Australia.
Ellenborough is a parish and village straddling the Oxley Highway and the Ellenborough River, less than one kilometre south of its confluence with the Hastings River. The village is about 33 km west of Wauchope and approximately 130 km east of Walcha. The boundaries are within the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council and Macquarie County.
Long Flat is a rural village situated on the Oxley Highway and the southern bank of the Hastings River. This village is about 50 kilometres west of Port Macquarie, 30 kilometres west of Wauchope and 133 km east of Walcha. The boundaries are within the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council Local Government Area and Macquarie County.
Camden Haven River, an open and trained intermediate wave dominated barrier estuary, is located in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia.
Corindi River, an open mature wave dominated barrier estuary, is located in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia.
The Towamba River is an open mature wave dominated barrier estuary or perennial river, located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia.
The Tuross River, an open semi-mature wave dominated barrier estuary or perennial stream, is located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia.
The Dennis Bridge is a steel truss road bridge that carries Hastings River Drive across the Hastings River, near Port Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia. The bridge carried the Pacific Highway from December 1961 until November 2017, when it was replaced by the (new) Hastings River Bridge, a concrete road bridge. The Dennis Bridge is managed by the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council.
River systems and rivers of the Northern Rivers catchments, New South Wales, Australia | |
|---|---|
| Tweed Shire and Tweed River | |
| Byron Shire and Brunswick River | |
| Richmond Valley and Richmond River | |
| Clarence Valley and Clarence River |
|
| Coffs Harbour, Bellingen Shire, and Bellinger River | |
| Nambucca Shire, Kempsey Shire, and Nambucca-Macleay rivers | |
| Port Macquarie-Hastings and Hastings River | |
