Gilbert River
Rising below Conical Hill in the Einasleigh Uplands, draining the Gregory Range's eastern slopes and the Newcastle Range's western slopes, the Gilbert River flows generally northwest through Agwamin/Ewamian, Takalak and Kurtjar country before discharging into the Gulf of Carpentaria in a 100-kilometre wide estuarine delta of tidal flats and mangrove swamps north of Karumba.
Around 40 tributaries, including the Styx, Percy, Robertson, Langdon, Little, and Einasleigh rivers, join the Gilbert over its 887-kilometre course, which drains a 22,041 square kilometre catchment.
Although the Gilbert and Einasleigh combine to form northern Australia's largest river system, both streams are seasonal; discharge varies greatly depending on the intensity of the monsoon. Most of the basin is natural grassland for low-density cattle grazing.
Ludwig Leichhardt named the river in honour of the naturalist John Gilbert, killed two weeks earlier in an encounter with Aboriginal people in July 1845.
The Gilbert River goldfield,435 kilometres west-north-west of Townsville, was one of North Queensland's more dramatic gold rushes. The main settlement, Gilberton, established in 1869, flourished briefly as a sizeable community of over three thousand before the toen collapsed in December 1873.
Missing links:
Einasleigh Uplands
Gregory Range
Newcastle Range
Karumba.
Styx River
Percy River
Robertson River
Langdon River
Little River
Einasleigh River
Ludwig Leichhardt
John Gilbert
Gilbert River goldfield
Gilberton
