| Castlereagh | |
| River | |
|
The river seen from the Castlereagh Highway, south of Walgett
|
|
| Country | Australia |
|---|---|
| State | New South Wales |
| Source | |
| - location | south east of Coonabarabran |
| Mouth | confluence with the Macquarie River |
| - location | west of Walgett |
The Castlereagh River is located in the State of New South Wales, Australia. The river rises in the heart of the Warrumbungle mountains and initially flows east through the town of Coonabarabran. It then follows a looping course to the south, west, and finally northwest, passing the towns of Binnaway, Mendooran, Gilgandra and Coonamble, before flowing into the Macquarie River before it flows into the Barwon River which then joins Culgoa River to form the Darling River.
Among the longer rivers of central and western New South Wales, the Castlereagh is unique in that it does not have its headwaters in the Great Dividing Range. In consequence of this, the average flow of the Castlereagh is quite low and variable.
The Darling River is the longest river in Australia and itself flows into the Murray River forming a part of the largest river system in the continent. The catchment of the Murray-Darling Basin including the tributary of the Castlereagh River drains about twenty percent of the continental surface area of Australia.
The Castlereagh River was explored by John Oxley in 1818.[1]
In January 2010, major flooding along the river inundated more than 400 rural properties.[2] Fodder drops were needed and some livestock had to be moved.