Brisbane River

The Brisbane River is the longest river in southeast Queensland, Australia, and flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay. The river is dammed by the Wivenhoe Dam, forming Lake Wivenhoe, the main water supply for Brisbane. The river was named after the Governor of New South Wales Thomas Brisbane by the explorer John Oxley in 1823.

The CityCat ferry service collects and delivers passengers along the inner-city reaches of the river. The Port of Brisbane manages the movement of larger vessels into the river from the bay.

Kayaking on the Brisbane River

Whether you are a first-timer or an experienced paddler, get out and discover Brisbane’s beautiful river city by kayak (day or night) – no matter what the weather! Riverlife’s guided kayaking adventure sessions let’s you see the city from a unique angle while you glide along the meandering Brisbane River! Leave from the Kangaroo Cliffs – See: http://www.riverlife.com.au/kayaking/

Depending on the tide, you will have the chance to see Brisbane’s prominent areas and landmarks such as the Brisbane Botanical Gardens and Mangroves, the Maritime Museum, South Bank Parklands, or paddle all the way up and under the Story Bridge to Mowbray Park!

River Tours

Several companies provide Brisbane river cruises and the picturesque Kookaburra River Queen paddle wheelers which offer sightseeing and dinner cruises. The Mirimar provides a river link from Brisbane city to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary or take a guided canoe trip on the upper reaches of the Brisbane River.

Other cruises chart the bay with tours to St Helena Island (including night cruises with reenactments of convict life) and Tangalooma on Moreton Island.

Between June to November you can experience the awe inspiring humpback whales as they pass Morton Bay on their annual migration. Cruises depart from points around the bay to the sighting areas for close-up views of the humpbacks and their playful antics.

River Walks

The Brisbane City Council has been developing a network of riverwalk pavements along the banks of the Brisbane River. Jim Soorley, a former mayor of Brisbane, encouraged serious investment into the quality and capacity of the Brisbane riverwalk. An interesting section is the floating walkway between the Story Bridge and Merthyr Street New Farm. Brisbane City planners require many developers of formerly private riverfront blocks to create new sections of the Brisbane Riverwalk that are accessible to the public.

Brisbane River Cod

The freshwater reaches of the Brisbane River once supported a unique species of cod, the Brisbane River cod which was similar to Murray cod and closely related to eastern freshwater cod. Unfortunately this unique native fish became extinct somewhere between the 1930s and 1950′s due to habitat degradation and overfishing. The river has been restocked with cod from the Mary River.

Bull Sharks

The Brisbane River is home to a very large population of bull sharks, thus swimming is not advised due to the dangers imposed by this predatory fish. Ipswich City Council warns against swimming as far up as Colleges Crossing.[12] The shark can be aggressive, grow up to 3 m in length and is unusual for a shark species because it can inhabit water containing less than 50% seawater.

Brisbane River’s source is located in the Brisbane Range, east of Kingaroy. It then makes its way south, past Mount Stanley, and townships including Moore and Toogoolawah before being joined by the Stanley River, just south of Somerset Dam. The river runs from there into Lake Wivenhoe, created by the Wivenhoe Dam. Beyond the dam, the river meanders eastward, meeting the Bremer River near Ipswich, then making its way through Brisbane’s western suburbs, including Jindalee, Indooroopilly and Toowong. Through the city, the river is travelled upon by CityCats and other ferries in Brisbane, winding its way through the city centre. The Brisbane River then flows through the Port of Brisbane area and out into Moreton Bay.

Kangaroo Point Cliffs

On the southern side of the river, opposite Gardens Point, are the Kangaroo Point Cliffs. The Kangaroo Point Cliffs were created by a quarrying operation that according to Allan Cunninghams’ Field Book, was underway prior to 1829 when he observed a “stone wharf presumably used for landing the blocks of stone ferried across the river for the construction of buildings in the settlement” this was in the vicinity of Edward Street ferry terminal. The volcanic rock or rhyolite lava flows which form the cliffs were deposited in the Tertiary period about 30 million years ago and filled up an ancient river valley. They currently form the banks of the Brisbane River.