The Mitchell River National Park is a national park located in the Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia. The national park is situated approximately east of Melbourne via the Princes Highway, and approximately northwest of Bairnsdale. The northern portion of the park may be accessed via .
Mitchell River
The park's central feature is the Mitchell River, which is the largest unregulated river in Victoria and provides a unique example of riparian ecology.
According to a Land Conservation Council Rivers & Streams Special Investigation completed in 1990, "It is an important example of the large-scale biological systems that were once widespread in south-eastern Australia." In 1992 the Mitchell River was listed as a Heritage River.
The park
The national park surrounds the spectacular Mitchell River where it has cut its way through rock strata creating high cliffs and several gorges. The park originated as the Glenaladale National Park in 1963 following a donation of of land from Australian Paper Manufacturers Ltd. An addition of was made in 1986 at which time the name was changed to the Mitchell River National Park. The park was further extended in 2003 by to bring the total area to .
In some of the gorges are found remnants of warm-temperate rainforest, the southernmost occurrence of this type of forest in the world. It can survive here as the steep walls of the gorges protect it from the annual drying summer winds and the bushfires that occasionally rage through the area.
There are recorded sightings of more than 150 bird species and 25 mammal species in the park. Vegetation in the park includes papery-barked kanooka trees, lilly-pillys, muttonwoods, ferns, mosses, vines, and lianas. In the drier areas, typical Australian species such as wattle and eucalypt dominate.