The Murchison River rises below
Pyramid Mountain, part of the north eastern section of the
West Coast Range within the
Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park. The river flows generally northwest, joined by six
tributaries including the
Wallace,
Achilles,
Bluff, and
Anthony rivers and flowing through the impoundment,
Lake Murchison. The river reaches its
confluence with the
Mackintosh River to form the Pieman River near in what is now
Lake Rosebery, formed by the impounding of the Pieman by the
Bastyan Dam. The river catchment easternmost point can be located at
Mount Pelion West, while the junction point in the river catchments of the Mackintosh River and the Murchison can be located at
Barn Bluff. The catchment is bordered to the south by the
Eldon Range, and its south western area is in the West Coast Range, with the
Tyndall Range and Lake Rolleston on its south west border. The Murchison River forms part of the
Pieman River Power Development scheme. The Murchison Dam across the Murchison River was constructed in the 1980s by
Hydro Tasmania. The dam forms the narrow Lake Murchison that lies east of
Mount Murchison. Water from the dam is fed through the Sophia Tunnel into
Lake Mackintosh for
hydroelectric power generation. ==See also==