Maitland River (Western Australia)

Maitland River
Country	Australia
Basin
Main source	214 metres (702 ft)[1]
River mouth	Indian Ocean sea level
Basin size	2,123 square kilometres (820 sq mi)[2]
Physical characteristics
Length	92 kilometres (57 mi)

The Maitland River is a river in the Pilbara of Western Australia.

The headwaters of the river rise in the Chichester Range near Zebra Hill and it flows in a north-westerly direction. The river crosses the North West Coastal Highway south of Karratha then discharges into the Indian Ocean. The river flows through a number of permanent and semi-permanent pools on the way to the coast including Miaree Pool, Toorare Pool and Charrowie Pool.

The river has four tributaries; Four Mile Creek, Cockatoo Creek, Munni Munni Creek and Corringer Creek.

The first European to discover the river was the surveyor and explorer Francis Thomas Gregory during an expedition to the area in 1861. Gregory named the river after another member of the expedition party, volunteer Maitland Brown.^[3]

The traditional owners of the area that the river flows through are the Ngaluma people.^[4]

Flood damage caused by Cyclone Monty in 2004 washed away over 200 m of North West Coastal Highway approaches to the Maitland River Bridge and damaged 300 m of shoulders and embankment. Repairs cost an estimated $1.5 million.^[5]

References

1. "Bonzle Digital Atlas – Map of Maitland River". 2009. Retrieved 10 July 2016.
2. "Modelled seabed response to possible climate change scenarios over the next 50 years in the Australian Northwest" (PDF). CSIRO. 1 March 2008. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
3. Western Australian Land Information Authority. "History of river names". Archived from the original on 16 February 2015. Retrieved 7 September 2011.
4. "AusAnthrop Australian Aboriginal tribal database". 2009. Retrieved 6 March 2009.
5. "Project: Maitland River Bridge". Cordell Constuction Projects. Cordell Information. Retrieved 14 October 2016.

Coordinates: 20°46′37″S 116°30′38″E / 20.77694°S 116.51056°E