Ovens River

The Ovens River at Bright

The Ovens River at Porepunkah.

Tobacco crops in the Ovens Valley

Course of the Ovens River

The Ovens River is a river in the Australian state of Victoria.

Hamilton Hume and William Hovell explored the area in 1824, naming the Ovens River. The river was called Burwang by the local Aborigines^{[citation needed]}.

The river rises in the Victorian Alps and flows past Bright, Myrtleford and Wangaratta where it joins the King River.

Ovens Valley

The river flows through the Ovens Valley, which is a popular tourist destination servicing the ski fields of Mount Hotham, Mount Buffalo and Falls Creek, the Alpine National Park and the Mount Buffalo National Park. Air sports such as gliding and paragliding are also practised here, and there is a hedge maze at Wandiligong. An abandoned railway line has been converted to a cycle trail, known as a rail trail, which stretches from Wangaratta and Beechworth to Bright.

There are several wineries in the area, and many hops fields. The wineries are a popular stop for cyclists on their touring rides.

Tobacco was a major industry in the valley until 2006; that year saw the British American Tobacco and Philip Morris companies decide to no longer buy Australian tobacco, and the Federal Government began implementing a plan to transition growers out of this industry. Reminders of the valley's long and prosperous tobacco history continue to dot the valley, such as the many drying huts.

List of Towns

• Wangaratta
• Beechworth
• Everton
• Myrtleford
• Ovens
• Bright
• Wandiligong
• Harrietville
• Porepunkah