Water in Lake Eyre
Submitted: Thursday, Jun 15, 2006 at 14:57
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Member - Sam (NSW)
I have heard rumors of Lake Eyre being rather wet at the moment thanks to the flood waters from QLD.
Is this the case? I will make adjustments to my itinerary to get out to
William Creek if this is the case, else I will stick to my current plan.
cheers,
Sam.
Reply By: Rick (S.A.) - Thursday, Jun 15, 2006 at 17:20
Thursday, Jun 15, 2006 at 17:20
Floodwaters from where in Qld?
The Lake fills from 5 major catchments: the Cooper; the Diamantina-Georgina;
Lake Frome; the Western Rivers of S.A.; and the Desert Rivers of NT. These systems are not experiencing major flows, but there is minor flow in the Diamantina & in the Cooper.
It is one thing for a river to run; it is a far different matter to have enough volume to carry to the lake. The most recent filling of Lake Eyre was in 1974. That volume was about 39 cubic kilometres. Sure, water has been into it since then, but not as a "major" event. Some said there was a significant flow in 2000 - it was about 6 cubic kilometres - obviously nothing like the 1974 event.
Although I am unaware of any of the tributaries of the Lake running water anywhere near close to the Lake, it is always best to ring the locals, who will be in the know about floods in their region. Your plans say that you are intending to see
William Creek.
William Creek is about as far removed from Qld & flood waters as it is possible to get in the L.Eyre Basin
This site may be useful: www.lakeeyrebasin.org.au/
So may the road condition reports available through this (EO) site.
Enjoy - the spell of the desert is certainly unique.
Cheers
AnswerID:
178649
Reply By: David from David and Justine Olsen's 4WD Tag-Along - Thursday, Jun 15, 2006 at 17:43
Thursday, Jun 15, 2006 at 17:43
All rumour.
AnswerID:
178655
Reply By: Sand Man (SA) - Friday, Jun 16, 2006 at 02:02
Friday, Jun 16, 2006 at 02:02
No water in Lake Eyre when I was there three weeks ago.
Don't know your itinerary Sam and there is not much at
William Creek except a lot of history, a Pub with great character, a caravan park with all amenities and the WC International Airport where you can charter a flight with Wrightsair for a unique view of the outback by air.
We stayed for three nights. Drove out to
Halligan Bay in Lake Eyre National Park to
check out the lake. (It doesn't need to have water in it)
You can hear the mournful howl of the
Dingo at night while you lay in your swag and gaze at the stars.
We just loved the remoteness of the area and the total relaxation experienced.
William Creek was one of the highlights of our trip.
AnswerID:
178721
Reply By: Bob Y. - Qld - Friday, Jun 16, 2006 at 07:04
Friday, Jun 16, 2006 at 07:04
Sam,
Smallest flood in Diamantina this year, for past 18 years. Did have about 3 years over that time where we didn't get any flood.
Diamantina did pick up some extra water from Mayne River, and Potjostler and Spring Creeks, but was only average at the Lakes. Got to remember that Goyder's Lagoon is a 1500sq Km(
check area??) swamp, that soaks up water like a sponge, and absorbs huge amounts of potential Lake Eyre floodwater.
Be surprised if there'd much more than a run into Lake Eyre, but as said above, worth a flight over that country, just to see how immense it all is. Try and get an early flight, light is always better.
Hooroo...
AnswerID:
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