Beveridge Island, Tyntynder
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An abandoned houseboat resting above the embankment at the end of Murrayvale Road, Tyntynder
Beveridge Island is formed by an anabranch of the Murray River in the farming community of Tyntynder downstream of Swan Hill. The start/finish was at the end of Murrayvale Rd, near the defunct Beveridge Island ferry. The ferry sits rusting a short distance upstream. There were a few houseboats moored there. |
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| Our kayak and tow-along. |
Not far upstream from where we launched the kayak, was the only building we saw on Beveridge Island, a basic concrete block structure that was likely a milking shed.
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The view downstream of the anabranch of the Murray River at our starting location.
The mighty Murray River looked pretty sedate but the current here was deceptively strong. We were using a home made tow along (as an experiment). It didn't work too well when paddling into a current causing us to waste a great deal of time and energy. |
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A feature of sorts were the numerous rusting cars near the river.
If we hadn't lost so much time paddling to the main Murray River, it would have been fascinating to have climbed out of the boat and explored the rusting cars. |
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Once on the Murray River and with the current, we were able to make good time. Our plan was to find a campsite about half way around the island.
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We ended up setting up camp at about the 13 km point, opposite 'Carnforth'.
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Our campsite!
We found a level section of ground not far from the embankment. The ground was hard, baked Murray River mud.
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We took a short walk around our campsite and noticed the levee bank and a well worn path. We didn't notice any animals grazing on the island or other signs of livestock to explain the path. The levee banks further fascinates as to the recent history of the island.
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Found this about 200 metres east of our campsite and inland of the levee bank. Looks like it's from a pontoon/houseboat.
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| Sunrise looking upstream. |
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Sunrise looking downstream and very tranquil.
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This was the early warning of our arrival back to where the paddle began.
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The water level did rise from the Thursday to the Friday.
Black arrows show direction of paddle.
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| A Murray Cod measuring 94 cm in length caught off the back of a houseboat moored at the start/finish point. |
The island was named after early Scottish settlers, Andrew and Peter Beveridge, who farmed this land along the Murray River. Peter and Andrew drove 1000 head of cattle from Kilmore to Tyntynder to commence farming in the area. Two other brothers later joined them, bringing a large number of sheep. Andrew was killed by local Aboriginals in a dispute over sheep. Rather than seeking revenge, Peter sought to understand the position of the local Aboriginal tribe (Watti Watti). Peter wrote books based on his learnings, noting the traditional way of life, culture and medicines.
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There is little information on Beveridge Island and why there was a ferry servicing it. There is no current river crossing to/from the island, other than boat. There are no roads/tracks on the island. Beveridge Island is pretty much vacant land now owned by the government. A local farmer with a surname of Hazlett was the last person recorded to own the land being Beveridge Island. |
