Colo River

Colo
River
King Rapids on the Colo River in Wollemi National Park, 2010.
Country	Australia
State	New South Wales
Regions	Sydney Basin (IBRA), Central Tablelands, Blue Mountains
Municipalities	Lithgow, Hawkesbury
Part of	Hawkesbury-Nepean catchment
Tributaries
- left	Wollemi Creek, Dooli Creek, Angorawa Creek
- right	Tambo Creek, Main Creek (New South Wales), Wollangambe River, Blacksmiths Creek (New South Wales), Gospers Creek
Source	Capertee River
Source confluence	Wolgan River
- location	northeast of Newnes
- elevation	218 m (715 ft)
Mouth	confluence with the Hawkesbury River
- location	near Lower Portland
- elevation	4 m (13 ft)
Length	86 km (53 mi)
National parks	Blue Mountains NP, Wollemi NP

The Colo River, a perennial stream that is part of the Hawkesbury-Nepean catchment, is located in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia.

The Colo River rises on the Great Dividing Range, northeast of Newnes, formed by the confluence of the Wolgan River and the Capertee River, which respectively drain the Wolgan and Capertee Valleys north of Lithgow. Colo River flows eastwards and then south through a deep gorge in the northern section of the Blue Mountains. The majority of the river lies in Wollemi National Park. The middle Colo is inaccessible, rugged and remote. The wilderness was saved from development, logging and damming in the late 1970s by the Colo Wilderness Preservation Society and other environmentalists. Emerging from the wilderness region, the lower part of the Colo River flows through a scenic, narrow agricultural valley and reaches the Hawkesbury River at Lower Portland north of Windsor. Tributaries of the Colo include the Wollangambe River and Wollemi Creek. The river descends 214 metres (702 ft) over its 86-kilometre (53 mi) course.

Parts of the area surrounding the river, including both the Blue Mountains National Park and the Wollemi National Park have received World Heritage listing, due in part to the discovery of the Wollemi Pine, often described as a 'living fossil' from the age of the dinosaurs. The Colo River gorge contains many boulder-rapids that alternate with deep pools. Even though this area is relatively close to the Sydney metropolitan area, the Colo River flows through the largest wilderness area in New South Wales. Local volunteer bush regeneration groups such as the "Friends of the Colo" have been helping eradicate invasive exotic weeds in the area surrounding the river.