Boating History

Boating History

"Sailing a dry Lake - Shipwreck on a wet Lake "

The following chronological history of boating on the Lake is by no means complete and will be supplemented as further claims appear. It is compiled from published sources listed in the bibliography, and where available, first person accounts. Although the LEYC primary interest is in yachting significant non yachting flood based events are also noted in this history.

Sources:
AA - Alvin Atkinson, skipper of the "Ibis" and LEYC Life Member
BS - Brian Sheedy "Exploring Lake Eyre"
GP - A Grenfell Price, Royal Geographical Society of Australia South Australian Branch
RC - Robert Clark, navigator of the "Ibis" and LEYC Member
RD - Roma Dulhunty "When The Dead Heart Beats Lake Eyre Lives"
RE - Rex Ellis "Bush Safari"
VK - Vincent Kotwicki "Floods of Lake Eyre"
VS - Vincent Serventy "The Desert Sea - The Miracle of Lake Eyre in Flood"
WB - Warren Bonython "Where Seasons Come and Go"
WR - Bill Rice, crew "Red Baron", skipper Kathleen M and LEYC Life Member

1844-6

Charles Sturt carried a whaleboat on a dray in the hope that he may reach the fabled inland sea. The boat was abandoned in the vicinity of Depot Glen and a replica of it at Tibooburra forms a monument to Sturts determination. Sturt qualifies as the Lake Eyre Yacht Clubs earliest "Gunna" member.

1857

Following Goyder's reports of water the SA Government dispatches Surveyor-General Freeling to Lake Blanche with a flat bottomed punt. The Lake dries over the intervening four months. The party commented that Goyder "could not be trusted alone in the Australian Desert with a mirage".

1922

G H Halligan flies over the Lake and reports it to be one third full. Four months later he returns using camels to bring in a boat - the Lake was dry!

1950

Lake Eyre north 3.7m
Elliot Price builds his boat "Lake Eyre" and explored the edge of Madigan Gulf. After making the first two way radio broadcast from the Lake he, E A and Malcom Brooks are shipwrecked on Hughes Island. (RD,VS)
Eric Bonython and Hector Brook take a conventional clinker hulled dinghy down the Cooper to the Cooper Mouth and back to Etadunna. (WB)
J R M Taggart investigates the Lake by plane and canoe.

Early 1950's

The Adelaide Land-Yacht Club's site http://www.picknowl.com.au/homepages/budrose/Default.htm has the following account:
"In the early fifties two Adelaide brothers built and sailed a land-yacht across Lake Eyre (a dry saltlake) in the North of South Australia and the yacht is still preserved in the Birdwood Mill museum (South Australia).

1955

Norman B Tindale (anthropologist) and three others observe the filling of Lake Eyre. A photo at The South Australia Museum indicates that the Lake was approx 2.5m deep at that time.

1963

A 20 year old drowned while using the Cooper Punt. (RD)

1973

1.7m flood Belt Bay, 430mm Madigan Gulf. Dry by December
Muloorina has 331mm annual rainfall in 1973 compared to 148 in the dry year of 1972. (RD)
The Dulhunty's travel 330km in a dinghy "Lake Eyre 2" from Fossil Tree Head to Silcrete Island and return. They did sail at one point using a sheet of plastic!

1974

6.4m flood & Goyder Channel flows North to South Muloorina has 432mm annual rainfall in 1974. (RD)
The Cooper Crossing exceeded 2.1m in 1974.(RD)
March 1974 Blue Hughes and family the first people to water ski on the Lake. (RD)
March 1974 Rex Ellis used two 3.7m flat bottomed punts to motor to the Lake from 200km (by river) up the Warburton. It took 3 days to navigate the Warburton. His group completed the first north-south crossing of the Lake during which one of the punts foundered at night in the middle of the Lake. Among his passengers were Vincent Serventy (Presenter of Walkabout) and Jim Dorward from Hawker. (RD, RE, VS)
Rex Ellis also attempted to circumnavigate the Lake with a party including Vincent Serventy and John Olsen (artist). After another punt capsize they stuck to the southern shore for a few days.
Rex Ellis twice took a party down the Cooper in punts. (RD,BS)
Dick Lang took a party down the Cooper in a conventional hulled boat. Algae in the Lake slowed his boat down eventually running out of fuel. He was rescued by Glen Hughes. (RD)
Dick Lang becomes first person to water ski across LEN. (BS)
Bob & Bill Mossel and Annabel Hill navigated the Cooper in a 2.7m Dinghy and proceeded through the Goyder Channel to Curdimurka on LES. (RD)
Mike Steel used Blue Hughes boat to sell snacks & drinks at Elliot Price Lagoon (?) and also took tours as far as Shelly Island. (RD)
A Flinders University Group led by Dr John Bye spent 10 days travelling from LES through the Goyder Channel to LEN and around LEN.(RD)
In July 1974 the Dulhunty's did 1860km on the Lake in "Lake Eyre 3". (RD) A John Clarke from SA's Electricity and Water Supply used Hughes boat on the Lake.(RD)
Charlie Phipps, his son Ric and Sandy Street traversed (measured the depth of) the Lake using Hughes' boat
In September Brian ? and Elizabeth, Michael & ? Blakeman motor to an island in Madigan Gulf in the dinghy "John Eyre". (EB)

1975

It is calculated that 200,000,000 fish have died so far since the 1974 flood.

In May 1975 Roger Bullock as skipper, with Bill Rice and cameraman Tim Robinson as crew, create history by sailing "Red Baron", a 20 foot catamaran, on the Lake. They sailed from Level Post Bay to Brookes Island, returning early the next day. A documentary was made of their trip to the Lake and Bill Rice's amateur radio sessions while on the Lake.(WR)
Click on the photo to see an Australian Archives image showing a young Peter Rice splashing around with his sisters Janet and Kathy beside Red Baron.

Diana Rice learns to sail on a 14 foot Hobie in Level Post Bay
July/August 1975 Alvin Atkinson, Max Atkinson and Robert Clark sail 779km on the Lake in the 20ft Randell Trailer Sailer "Ibis". (RD, RC, AA)

1976

Lake less than 4m by February 1976. (RD)
Muloorina has 365mm annual rainfall in 1976. (RD)
Port Vincent Sailing Club member Alvin Atkinson, his brother Max from Snowtown and Rob Clark from Port Clinton spend 9 days sailing 520Km on the yacht "Ibis". (RD, RC, AA)
Kaye Illman from Port Vincent Sailing Club and his crew sailing an identical 20ft yacht "Jasmine" join "Ibis" to cruise the Lake. (AA)
In May the Red Baron class catamaran "Kathleen M", owner/skipper Bill Rice from Altona in Victoria, circumnavigates Madigan Gulf in 5 days visiting Eric and Ibis Islands. Crew were Ron Fisher who also sailed a mirror on the Lake, Peter Fisher, Sid Clark and Janet Rice.(AA, WR)
The South Australian Hartley TS16 Association held a regatta on the Lake at Level Post Bay. (VK, BS, AA)
August 1976 Vincent Serventy and John Olsen visited the Cooper outlet, Brooks, Silcrete and Dulhunty Islands in a power boat capable of 50km/hr
In October 1976 Bruce Burton from Upwey Victoria used 3.7m aluminium boats and inflatable dinghys in the southern half of LEN. (RD)
The police use the Dulhunty's and then their own boat to rescue somebody from Jackboot Bay.(RD)

1977

In May Bill Rice with Ron Fisher sails "Kathleen M" to the Cooper Mouth. (WR)
The Lake is still navigable in June 1977. (RD)
"Out on the Lake somewhere, a family was said to be cruising on a trailer-sailer." (BS)
Bob Mossel and Denise Kuhne travel via inflatable down the Kallakoopah from an airdrop in mid Simpson desert planning to cross the Lake to Level Post Bay. Unable to find the Warburton Groove they were thwarted and Bob had to walk out to Wariner Railway Siding on the Old Ghan line for help.

1978

The Lake is still navigable.

1984

Local rain floods LES and overflows through the Goyder Channel filling LEN to 3.5m. This is the first time white man has witnessed water flowing south to north through the channel.
Vincent Serventy and Clifton Pugh drifted down the Diamantina making a documentary. They had trouble in the shallow water found in the Warburton as most of LEN water came from LES and local rain. They were unable to travel out into the Lake as the Warburton Groove had dried.
No record yet of any further boating on the Lake in this flood.

1989

Local rain again floods LES and overflows through the Goyder Channel filling LEN to 3.0m. Roxby had 13" in two days!
Approximately 2km of old railway embankment washed away at the Stuart Creek bridge, Curdimurka.
Denis Bartell starts from the Dig Tree on his journey down the Cooper but runs out of water before the Birdsville Track.
Bill Rice launches "Kathleen M" on LES but strong winds prevent him sailing. Not to be daunted he investigates Lake Torrens and becomes possibly the first (and only) person to sail on that lake
Rex Ellis uses his punts to motor the length of Lake Torrens.

1990

The Cooper navigable in September with approx 6 week window of opportunity!
Denis Bartell completes his canoe trip on the Cooper from the Dig Tree to the Lake.(BS)
Brian Sheedy also does the Cooper. (BS)

1991

Kevin Rohrlach takes a 3.8m aluminium dinghy down the Warburton from its start at the Goyder Lagoon to the Lake. (BS)

1997

A Warburton flood fills Belt Bay to 1.5m. Local rain fills LES to 1.5m.
Des ? a pilot from William Creek takes a small punt off ABC point for an aerial photo shoot.
Bob Backway and family sail for 4 days on LES after an aborted attempt on LEN via ABC point.

2000

In April 2000 Bob Backway and son Stephen spend a week on LEN in Belt and Jackboot Bays. Lake Eyre Yacht Club formed.
July 2000 Robert Clark and son canoe from lower Jackboot to Silcrete Island and return. Following this his son walks, bicycles and skis from this lowest point to Mt Kosciosko, the highest point in Australia.
Another two canoeists attempt to cross Belt Bay from ABC Bay. Following two days of strong head winds they return.
Rex Ellis does a number of trips on The Warburton and becomes the first to navigate the entire length of the Kallakoopah.
September 2000 Bob Backway, wife Doreen, Stephen and Mindy spend a week on LEN.

2001

Unprecidented winter rains put 1.4m of water in Belt Bay and LES with 1m in Madigan Gulf in June.
In August Bob Backway, Dave Hardwick and Mike Wilkins (photo, film and video documentary producer) spend five days and cold nights on LES.

2004

The Warburton floods but the flood is too small to put any significant water into the Lake .
In March Bob Backway and Mike Wilkins sail down The Warburton and motor back in 11 days. They meet Rex Ellis on the river returning from his 16th journey and celebrating his 30 year association with river since his first adventure in March 1974. Rex does another three trips this flood.
In April Ben Kozel and Tim Jarvis kayak The Warburton from Kalamurina and attempt to paddle the Warburton Groove - eventually walking out and into controversy.
John (Johnno) Hammond from Mungerannie jet boats down The Warburton from Poonarunna to Lake Eyre.
In July Bob Backway sails solo for five days on a very shallow Lake Eyre South (800mm max depth).

2007

The Warburton floods but the flood puts only a small amount of water into the Lake proper.
In March Bob Backway sails solo down The Warburton and Kalawerina to the Lake, and up the Macumba and Kallakoopah to both rivers limit of navigation. Trip was 550km and took 13 days.
Rex Ellis does one trip on The Warburton and a number of trips on The Diamantina and Georgina.
Bob and Doreen Backway sail a canoe the last 40kms down The Warburton to Lake Eyre and return in a 3 day trip

30 July 2007