Shoalhaven River (Gorge)
Also known as: Shoalhaven Gorge
Some of the most spectacular gorge scenery in NSW; Blockup Gorge red cliffs; sandstone walls; sandy beaches; old copper-mine chimneys
Is there water?
Whether there is a river here on your dates, and what kind of water it is.
Natural flow upstream; lower 14 km is Tallowa Dam impoundment (Lake Yarrunga, flatwater)
Year-round when flows adequate (min ~0.8m gauge); lower Lake Yarrunga flatwater always paddleable (Confirm.)
Autumn to spring; avoid summer bushfire/heat and low flows
Temperate; cool in winter, warm summer
Flash flooding in gorge; summer heat/bushfire; long remote exposure
Grade & who can come
A river changes grade with its level. These grades describe a normal flow - in flood the same run is harder, and often a different run entirely. Check the gauge before you commit.
Average Grade III, highest Grade IV (a Grade IV-V drop below Rocky Knob portaged); Class II-IV
Canoe; kayak; SUP
Many road/exit access points (Sewells Point, Sailors Gully, Bungonia) allow shorter legs and overnighters
Fit multiday paddlers; iconic Sydney-region overnighter; long committing gorge with portages - not for pure beginners on the full run
The run
Yellow Spring Creek falls (portage, 10m waterfall); Rocky Knob 5m drop (Grade IV-V, portage); Washing Machine (Grade IV chute with suckback)
Portages at Yellow Spring Creek waterfall and Rocky Knob; Washing Machine suckback; log/tree hazards
Oallen Ford to Tallowa Dam (Shoalhaven Gorge)
Remote upper gorge quiet; Tallowa Dam/Lake Yarrunga end busier with overnight paddlers
Access & shuttle
Morton NP / Lake Yarrunga; NPWS camping at Lake Yarrunga campgrounds; some access via private land
Permits and operators change - confirm before booking.
Put-in Oallen Ford; take-out at Tallowa Dam launching ramp/picnic area (non-powered craft only)
Car shuttle approx 75 km return; Sewells Point access usually 2WD; other access needs high-clearance and landowner permission
Plentiful bush camps (Jockeys Point, Fossickers Flat, Bungonia Creek); NPWS Lake Yarrunga campgrounds (some with toilets)
Multiday self-support gear, water treatment; minimal mobile coverage in gorge
Nowra; Kangaroo Valley; Braidwood
Hazards & exits
Committing multiday gorge; portages; suckback rapids; feral animals
Exits at Sewells Point (120m climb), Sailors Gully, Bungonia; road heads at either end
Self-supported; guided overnighters offered by Kangaroo Valley operators (lower end)
This profile is desk research, compiled from public sources - not a first-hand river run report. Coordinates are approximate.