The Latrobe River rises below Dick Hill, from the southern slopes of the
Baw Baw plateau, part of the Great Dividing Range, between
Powelltown and
Noojee where it shares a watershed with the
Little Yarra River, in a
state forestry area. The river flows generally in an easterly direction, then south, and then east again through the
Latrobe Valley, joined by seventeen
tributaries including the
Ada,
Toorongo,
Loch,
Tanjil,
Morwell,
Tyers, and
Thomson rivers, before reaching its
mouth in
Lake Wellington east of where it forms its confluence with the
Avon. It then goes to flow out of Lake Wellington and into Lake Victoria, Within Lake Victoria, south of , the river forms its
confluence with the Forge Creek and
Mitchell River and empties into
Bass Strait southwest of in the
Shire of East Gippsland. The river descends over its
course. Major road crossings of the river, from upstream to downstream, are located on the Yarra Junction-Noojee Road east of Powelltown; the Mount Baw Baw Road east of Noojee; the Willowgrove Road south of ; the Moe-Rawson Road north of ; the Moe-Glengarry Road west of ; and the
Princes Highway north of . The Latrobe River sub-catchment area is managed by the West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority. ==Etymology==