The Great Dividing Range, or the Eastern Highlands, is Australia's largest mountain range. It is the fifth longest land-based range in the world. The range is  in length and runs along the whole east coast of Australia. In the north it starts from Dauan Island off the northeastern tip of Queensland. In Victoria the range turns west and ends at the Grampians in western Victoria. The width of the range varies from about  to over .

The difference in height between the narrow coastal area and the eastern mountains has affected Australia's climate. This caused by the mountains causing lots of rain as clouds move over them. There are many gorges where the rise is tall.

Description

The Great Dividing Range is not a single mountain range. There is a complex of mountain ranges, plateaus, upland areas and escarpments. In some places the land is nearly flat, with only very low hills.  The highlands range from  to  in height.

The Great Dividing Range is made of limestones, sandstone, quartzite, schists and metamorphic dolomite. Their shapes have been made by faulting and folding processes.

The crest of the range is the boundary between the drainage basins of rivers; those which drain east into the Pacific Ocean, or southward into Bass Strait; and those rivers which drain west and south into the Murray-Darling rivers. In the north, the rivers on the west side of the range drain towards the Gulf of Carpentaria.

The higher and more rugged parts of the "range" are not always part of the crest of the range. The term "Great Dividing Range" is used for both the watershed crest, and all of the hills and mountains between the east coast of Australia and the central plains and lowlands. At some places the Great Dividing Range can be up to  wide. Most of the ranges and other features have their own names.

History 
The Great Dividing Range was formed during the Carboniferous period, some 300 million years ago when the super continent Pangaea was forming. The range has eroded since then, and is now much lower than the more recent ranges such as the Alps and Himalayas. Its highest point is 	Mount Kosciuszko at 2,228 m (7,310 ft).

Parks and protected areas
Much of the range lies in national parks and other protected areas. Most of the national parks are listed below. There are also many more state forests.

Alpine National Park – VIC
Bald Rock National Park – NSW
Barrington Tops National Park – NSW
Baw Baw National Park – VIC
Blue Mountains National Park – NSW
Border Ranges National Park – NSW
Brindabella National Park – NSW
Brisbane Ranges National Park – VIC
Budawang National Park – NSW
Bunya Mountains National Park – QLD
Burrowa-Pine Mountain National Park – VIC
Cathedral Rock National Park – NSW
Conondale National Park – QLD
Cunnawarra National Park – NSW
Dandenong Ranges National Park – VIC
Deua National Park – NSW

Dharug National Park – NSW
Gibraltar Range National Park – NSW
Girraween National Park – QLD/NSW
Grampians National Park – VIC
Guy Fawkes River National Park – NSW
Heathcote-Graytown National Park
Kanangra-Boyd National Park – NSW
Kosciuszko National Park – NSW
Lake Eildon National Park – VIC
Lamington National Park – QLD
Morton National Park – NSW
Mount Buffalo National Park – VIC
Mummel Gulf National Park – NSW
Namadgi National Park – ACT
Nattai National Park – NSW
New England National Park – NSW

Nowendoc National Park – NSW
Oxley Wild Rivers National Park – NSW
Snowy River National Park – VIC
South East Forest National Park – NSW
Springbrook National Park- QLD
Sundown National Park – QLD
Toonumbar National Park – NSW
Wadbilliga National Park – NSW
Washpool National Park – NSW
Werrikimbe National Park – NSW
Wollemi National Park – NSW
Yarra Ranges National Park – VIC
Yengo National Park – NSW

References

Mountain ranges of Australia
Geography of New South Wales
Geography of Victoria, Australia
Geography of Queensland