Lake Eildon National Park

• Introduction
• Fact file
• A look at the past
• Wildlife
• Natural features and native plants


Introduction

Expansive Lake Eildon with around 550 kilometres of shoreline is fed by clear mountain rivers and is surrounded by rolling mountains, heavily clad forest and open woodland, making it a favourite venue for boating and waterskiing, fishing and bushwalking. The surrounding countryside is prized for its eucalypt forests, its wildlife and its fresh mountain air.

Fact file

Access

From Melbourne via Maroondah Hwy to Alexandra then Goulbourn Valley Hwy to Eildon

Best Season

Summer for watersports

Location

145 km north-east of Melbourne, 17 km east of Alexandra

Park Information

• PV 13 1963
• PV Lake Eildon (03) 8627 4699

Size

27 750 ha

Where to Stay

Eildon (03) 5774 2909, 1800 003 713
Goughs Bay/Jamieson/Mansfield
(03) 5775 1464, 1800 039 049

A look at the past

The Taungurong people who occupied this region were forced off the land by white settlers, but today their descendants are involved in park management and in recovering their heritage. Graziers moved into the district in the 1840s, clearing land for farming, and were followed soon after by goldminers (the remains of old shafts and mining relics are dotted through the park). In the 1950s, the Goulburn and Delatite rivers were flooded to form Lake Eildon and provide irrigation and hydro-electricity for the north-central region. Farms and forest were inundated, and at times of drought the derelict remains of buildings and twisted shapes of long-dead trees emerge above the low water level. Lake Eildon National Park was declared in 1997.

Wildlife

Eastern grey kangaroos can often be seen grazing, but you may also spot short-beaked echidnas, wombats (especially at night) and, if you look high in the fork of gum trees, koalas. Cormorants, pelicans and ducks feed and nest at the water’s edge. Around camping areas you will often hear the chirrup of tiny superb fairy-wrens, the rasping of gang-gang cockatoos overhead and the raucous laugh of the laughing kookaburra, while rosellas swoop through the trees. Wedge-tailed eagles, easily recognised by their impressive wingspan and wedge of their tail, fly high above.

Natural features and native plants

The southern part of the park is rugged mountain country. Stretches of dry grassy woodland, pristine old-growth forest, and more recent forest cover much of the land. Eucalypts are the predominant species with red box, candlebark and stringybark, to name a few. At a lower level are dusty green melaleucas and silver wattle, and in the drier patches on the hillsides wildflowers such as native bluebells, early nancy and fragile spider orchids flower in spring and summer.


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Featured Activities in the National Park

• FISH for trout in the park’s crystal-clear rivers
• VISIT in spring to see wildflowers in bloom
• WATCH the dawn when the mist rises off the lake to reveal the mountains
• CANOE on the still, glassy waters of Lake Eildon

Boat tours and canoeing

Boating is one of the most popular activities, and there are also many houseboats moored on the lake. The Big River Arm of the lake is a favourite location for paddling a canoe or kayak. There are public boat-launching ramps, and boat-based camping locations.

Bushwalking

There are numerous walking tracks, especially in the southern section, and two self-guided nature trails in the north-west section. Shorter walks include Devil Cove to Lakeside Track (7 km return, 1½ hours, easy), a shady pathway beside the lake. Cook Point walk (10 km return, 3 hours) heads east along Blowhard Spur to the Summit, for tremendous views, then descends gently through light forest to the shady Wallaby Bay Track.

Deer stalking

Hunting of sambar deer is permitted in designated areas, in the open season only. Contact Parks Victoria for full details.

Fishing

Boat and shore-based angling in the lake typically yield brown and rainbow trout, redfin and perch. May and June are prime months for trout in the rivers (check for closed season).

Waterskiing

Lake Eildon is renowned as one of the state’s premier venues for waterskiing.

• Campsites

Campsites

Candlebark camping area

Candlebark is located in the popular Fraser Camping Area, on the western edge of Coller Bay and accessed via UT Creek Rd. Each of its 70 or so campsites should be booked in advance through the Parks Victoria website. To... Find out more

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Coopers Point camping area (boat-based camping)

A boat trip is your only option for getting out to Coopers Point on the eastern shoreline of Lake Eildon, just to the west of Mt Enterprise. Before paddling or motoring out of Coller Bay, check with the national park... Find out more

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Delatite Arm Reserve camping areas

There are some far-flung camping sites adjacent to the softwood plantations on Delatite Arm, at the north-eastern extremity of Lake Eildon National Park. You can reach these dispersed lakeside sites by travelling to... Find out more

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Devils Cove camping area

Devils Cove is one of several scenic camping spots at Collers Bay, in what’s known as the Fraser Camping Area; sites here can be booked on-line via the Parks Victoria website. Take the gentle 3.5 km walk around the... Find out more

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Jerusalem Creek camping area

There are a half-dozen designated camping areas at Jerusalem Creek, each with about 10 sites. Three of these – areas 1, 5 and 6 – need to be prebooked using the Parks Victoria website. Pet lovers note: this... Find out more

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Lakeside camping area

The boat ramp at the Lakeside camping area gets a workout during holiday periods, when sundry anglers, waterskiers and sightseers take to the water. This is one of the popular Fraser Camping Area destinations on the edge... Find out more

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Mountaineer Creek camping area (walk-in and boat-based camping)

Mountaineer Creek is up in the northern section of Lake Eildon National Park, where you can really get away from it all. The camping area is situated on peaceful Stone Bay and can only be accessed by boat or on foot.... Find out more

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O’Toole Flat camping area

If you want to avoid the low-key bustle at the popular places around Coller Bay, head south of Eildon towards Jamieson and then veer north on Pinnacle Track for 1 km to O’Toole Flat. It’s a suitably basic... Find out more

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Taylors Creek camping area (walk-in and boat-based camping)

Taylors Creek is in the isolated Jerusalem Block of the national park, down at Big River Arm, and can only be reached by boat or a decent bushwalk. This is where you should head if remote bush camping is your preference.... Find out more

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