Mitchell River National Park, Nature reserve in Shire of Wellington, Australia

Mitchell River National Park is a 14,250-hectare national park in Gippsland, Victoria, where the Mitchell River has cut high cliffs and several gorges through rock strata. The river fills the foreground of the main view, dark blue to near black with ripples and sky reflections, bordered by low rocky banks and wooded hills. A rounded grey rock sits partly submerged in the lower right corner.

The park began in 1963 as Glenaladale National Park after Australian Paper Manufacturers Ltd donated 163 hectares. In 1986 a further 112.7 hectares were added and the name changed to Mitchell River National Park. A 2,375-hectare addition in 2003 brought the total to 14,250 hectares.

The Den of Nargun, a cave behind a small waterfall on Woolshed Creek about 1 km upstream from the Mitchell River, was a women's initiation and learning site for the Gunai/Kurnai. Legend says the Nargun, a half-human half-stone creature, abducted children from the rockpool and could not be harmed by boomerangs or spears, which rebounded on the thrower. The cave's stalactites were broken off as souvenirs. Deadcock Den, 200 m downstream, was also significant to Gunai women.

Access is from the Princes Highway, about 320 km east of Melbourne and 25 km northwest of Bairnsdale, with the northern section reached via Dargo. Tracks lead to the Den of Nargun on Woolshed Creek, roughly 1 km upstream from its junction with the Mitchell River; Deadcock Den lies about 200 m from the creek mouth. The river itself is unregulated, so levels rise after rain.

The Mitchell River is Victoria's largest unregulated waterway and carves deep gorges through the park. These gorges shelter the southernmost warm-temperate rainforests on Earth.