Lake Wivenhoe


Lake Wivenhoe is a lake formed by the Wivenhoe Dam and the surrounding locality in the Somerset Region, Queensland, Australia.

Geography

The locality includes the dam wall and associated water management infrastructure at the south, the lake created by the dam, sections of the Brisbane and Stanley Rivers as they flow into the lake from the north and a narrow strip of land around the dam, the lake and river the sections. The lake's boundaries are very irregular and this is reflected in the very irregular boundaries of the locality. The locality is entirely set aside for water management purposes.
Due to its unusual shape, Lake Wivenhoe has many adjacent localities including (commencing from the dam wall in the south and proceeding clockwise:
Wivenhoe Pocket, Patrick Estate, Wivenhoe Hill, Coominya, Moombra, Glen Esk, Murrumba, Coal Creek, Caboonbah, Mount Beppo, Cressbrook, Lower Cressbrook, Cooeeimbardi, Somerset Dam, Crossdale, Bryden, Dundas, and Split Yard Creek.
The Brisbane Valley Highway passes through the south of the locality as it travels across the top of the dam wall.

Etymology

The name Wivenhoe comes from the name of the pastoral property established circa 1845 by Edmund Blucher Uhr, which took its name from the town of Wivenhoe in Essex, England.

Heritage listings

Lake Wivenhoe has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
Although it is not a populated area, Lake Wivenhoe offers a range of outdoor recreational facilities for camping, picnics, swimming, fishing and water sports.
Camping sites are provided at Captain Logan and Lumley Hill Areas. The managed camping facilities at Captain Logan Camp include hot showers, barbecues and toilets, and are adjacent to playgrounds and a boat ramp at Logan Inlet. Cormorant Bay, Hamon Cove and Spillway Common also have facilities for picnic.
A stocked impoundment permit is required to fish in the dam. Swimming is permitted and camp sites have been established. Electric and non-powered boating with a permit is allowed, but domestic animals are banned.
The heritage-listed Caboonbah Homestead was located on to the north-west of the lake where it was a tourist attraction operated by the Brisbane Valley Historical Society until the homestead burned down in 2009.