See Where the Rivers Run - The Murray Darling Basin Consultation Bus Tour - September 2014.

“All The Rivers Run” was the name of a TV miniseries about life on the river in the early days of the colonies with paddle boats pulling loads from the outback to the ports down south.

 Last year I joined a group of Uniting Church people who have been looking at the plight of this mighty river system, those who depend on it for a living and those play on it. We are also looking at the life of the river, its birds, fish and the wetlands along her banks.

In March when I took some leave and Lyn and I headed off in the caravan, I was asked to check out some of the towns and waterways around Echuca, as this is going to be a part of the area where we’ll be taking a bus tour to high light and inform interested people about this wonderful area.

I met Paul Creek from the Riverina Presbytery and the UCMDB group , and he gave me my brief. First stop, Nathalia and the Barmah Forest and Heritage, Education and Information Centre. This was a great spot to kick off from. Jenny was very helpful and excited to hear that we had plans to bring tours from the church down to see and learn. Loaded up with maps, flyers and everything Sun Country, we looked around the centre, which has, amongst other things, a great video on the history of the Barmah Forest and Lake. 

We took a cruise on the Murray River through the “Barmah Choke” with great commentary. We learned the history and experienced the swathe of beauty of this important eco- system. The Choke was formed by a massive shift in the plates 25,000 of year ago. As we drove from our base in Moama we went through a cutting, which is the exposed part of that event.

 The Yorta Yorta people have lived along the banks of the Murray in this area for thousands of years. There is a cultural centre which we will be visiting but also many sites scattered in the bush around the lake.  We also saw the old cattle yards where the early European settlers mustered their mobs in days gone by. Three periods of time –geological, early and then more recent, history.

In the photo below you see some gates which are used to flood the wetlands of Moira Lake on the NSW side. The Barmah Lake self-fills and empties but Moira is regulated. It is flooded   then allowed to dry up thus giving the mighty red gums the flood and drought that they need to grow. You may also see from the photos that the river bank is higher than the forest floor - a strange view from the boat looking down at the base of the trees. The surrounding land is made up of National Park and Forestry.

 We also toured around Echuca, visiting the historic wharf area, which now has an interactive centre. As we roamed around we saw many weirs, wetlands and channels, massive farming projects and people out on their boats. The value, beauty and eco importance of the Murray Darling system reaches up and down the whole system; what happens in the north effects the southern reaches.

Have you wondered what it’s all about? Want to see and hear from those who work and live along the banks of this important river system? Interested to hear some guest speakers, who will make you well informed about some of the finer points?

              Then maybe you would like to join "The Bus Tour, September 2014.” Coming soon! 

                                                                                                                                - Phill Matthews.