The Ovens River is a clear freestone high country stream originating in the Victorian Alps, flowing 191 kilometres through a stunning combination of alpine forest, plantations, and farmland before joining the Murray River above Lake Mulwala. Descending approximately 405 metres from its headwaters, the river passes through iconic North East Victorian townships including Harrietville, Bright, Porepunkah, Myrtleford, Beechworth, and Wangaratta. One of Victoria's most celebrated fly fishing destinations, the Ovens offers a diverse range of water types — from tight, tumbling alpine streams near Harrietville to broader meadow-style runs and pools around Bright and Porepunkah. Notably, the Ovens River is one of only two significant rivers in the Murray-Darling Basin that remains unregulated, preserving a natural flooding and drying regime that supports exceptional native fish habitat, particularly in its lower reaches.