Lake Broadwater Recreation Reserve, Qld

If you are in the Western Downs area of Queensland, make sure you put this destination on your list.  Lake Broadwater, located 30km south-west of Dalby provides fantastic camping facilities for all types of RV vehicles, as well as tent camping.  The camping area has both powered and unpowered sites and you’ll have access to toilets and hot showers. 

Do as little or as much as you like during your stay here.  Simply sit and enjoy the lake views from your campsite, or from one of the many covered picnic areas scattered along the foreshore.  Enjoy a casual BBQ by the water using the onsite BBQ facilities or watch you little ones as they have fun in the playground. Take a walk along the lake, observe the birds and wildlife, or take a longer walk to the bird hide which overlooks the lake.  Take a dip in the lake if it’s a warm day or enjoy boating or kayaking.  You’ll find plenty to keep you occupied.  This is the perfect location to become absorbed in nature.  And you will enjoy the most stunning sunrises and sunsets here, with a different display of colours on any given day.

The lake itself is a naturally occurring freshwater lake that covers approximately 350 hectares, and when full is only 3-4 metres deep.  The conservation park covers an area of around 1,212 hectares.  More than 230 species of birds have been recorded in the Lake Broadwater Conservation Park.

Aboriginal people once camped by the lake and its surrounds as it provided an abundance of food plus a reliable water source.  Remains of stone artifacts and scarred trees that were found show that this was a special place for the local indigenous community. 

The lake would have been a major camping point for indigenous groups travelling through the area on their way to the Bunya Mountains to take part in feasts, generally from December to March when the bunya cones dropped.  Aboriginal peoples from as far away as the Clarence River area, Maranoa River and Wide Bay were invited to join in these gatherings.

Later on, the area was used for stock watering and grazing – first up by teamsters along their travel routes, then by settlers to the area.

Take a good look around beautiful Lake Broadwater on our YouTube channel https://youtu.be/DCw2Kk3e9uc