Lake Wivenhoe access???

g'day people ;D
i was in brissy recently looking around for a nice place to relocate the family to after having enough of the central nsw lifestyle (dubbo) and i was amazed at the number and quality of stocked impoundments up there. most of these impoundments were in easy reach of the average joe for a day trip or a weekender.
the dam i was blown away by was wivenhoe, this is one of the most spectactular looking lakes i had seen in my travels and was amazed to see the boat ramp facilities (logans inlet) totaly deserted, not a person in sight(thursday afternoon). it was then that i saw the boating restrictions and my jaw dropped, how the heck do you fish or cruise a lake of this magnitude(sp) with an electric motor only?? my tinny only has a small minkota of 27lbs thrust and to travel to the other side of this lake and fish for a while and then return back would be down right dangerous if a nasty southerly blew up.
surely the powers to be could compromise and cordon off the southern end of the dam , make it a no-go zone while having a maximum horsepower limit for the rest say 50hp thus reducing the erosin factor of relentless laps in ski boats ( sorry skiers). our local dam (burrendong) is of simmilar size and has no restrictions even at its current level off stuff all% and it supplies water to a large population base as well.

any how theres a point to discuss amongst us and lets invite comments from the authorities ( we know your watchin big-brother ;D)

cheers everyone swano( can't wait for the move to QLD)

For years we launched our boats at Billies Bay.
Like a lot of other sites at Wivenhoe that perfect ramp has now been made into a no go zone. Wivenhoe has been well stocked by the local stocking groups for many years.

Many people would love to enjoy the benefits of such a great waterway on our door step.

Wivenhoe is a magnificent impoundment with plenty of big fish on tap. All this within an hour of the Brisbane CBD. The electric only restriction does seem a bit over the top, as is the ludicrous $15.00 per week boating access permit. I dream of the day when I see more than half a dozen cars in the Logan Inlet ramp car park. It'll only happen when petrol moters are permitted. Maybe a speed restriction on the complete dam, similar to Cressbrook would be OK.

Yes would have to agree with all that is said here, I for one rarely fish this very nice dam due to the restrictions imposed, it all becomes too hard and as someone said down right dangerous when a strong southerly blows up when you are running electric only.

Regards,

THE BOMBER

Have to agree with the others and also dozens of my fishing mates.

We would rather take our dollars to other locations where motor restrictions are not in force. Now thats a pity, as recreational anglers bring lots of money into many local economies. The surrounding areas of this amazing resourse, Big W, as we have affectionately named it, currently misses out on our hard-earned!!

I for one would fish the area most weekends if motor restrictions were lifted.

I have no probs with paying a boating fee....but I do take exception to the fee under the current system where electric only applies.

The safety issue also comes into it. This is a dangerous water if a 20knotter blows in from the south and you are stuck somewhere under electric ony power. In these situations, I have no hesitation in dropping the outboard in and motoring back to safety. And I would actively fight against any subsequent fines imposed should I be busted for this.

Randall.

Yep , the world is run by wankers.
Even allowing 4 strokes in up to say 60 hp would do.
I cannot see how letting all sorts in would affect the water quality though, seeing as Somerset dam flows directly into Wivenhoe and you can put anything you like in Somerset.
I think they just like to keep us guessing as to whether any of them actually has a brain, there are about 6 dams in that general area and everyone of them has different rules. I think it is something like this.
Cooby dam sale boats only - fishing is OK.
Perserverance skiing is OK , no fishing.
Cressbrook has fishing , no skiing, you can camp there but you are not allowed on the water before six in the morning or after 6 at night , even in summer, they fined some guy who camped there and went for a paddle in his canoe at quarter to 6.
Sommerset - anything goes.
Atkinsons dam (when there is any water in it) anything goes.
Big W electric only.
Confused - good , their plan is working. :P

G'Day Swano,
I fully agree mate. Letting outboard motors to be run on Wivenhoe for fishing would see South-East Qld put on the world fishing map for sure. Imagine all of the overseas visitors that could come to enjoy the great fishing there & all of them spending money here on travel, accomodation, food, fuel, gear etc.
Its funny how there are guides working most bass lakes, but not on Somerset or Wivenhoe (is fitsy still doing Somerset?). I spoke with one guide at the boat show last year & he said the fees imposed by the water board are rediculous to the point its not worth doing charters there. ::)
It would only take a stroke of a pen by a pollie to get this rediculous situation fixed & plant that pollie in the hearts & minds of all us fishos who would love to use that lake as well as the businesses who would benefit.
Could see some great bass tournaments there, probably the most suitable lake to host an international comp, but not possible with all the rules, restrictions, access points being mothballed & the needless fees.
Water quality cant be an issue cause you can run an outboard above & below Wivenhoe. So what is up with this water board?

Who do we write to or ring to get something done?

James

Yep guys I agree with everything said.

Who or which body can we lobby to get some action ?

Or would we be fighting a losing battle.

Macca

I was informed by Gerry, one of the Rangers that patrols the Big W surrounds that the main reason for O/B bans were that it eliminates the possibility of a boat explosion and the subsequent ecological dissaster.

Now blow me down!!! when was the last time anyone heard of a fire on board a fishing punt? Ski boats? Yes!! But fishing boats? May as well ban all boats on all water bodies then!!!

Randall.

chill out QLDR's.....think yourselves lucky you've only go to go 5 mins further up the road and you've got S'Set :o :o or 1 hour in any direction to chose from any number of dams ::) ::)

and don't be too hard on the authorities...if you push the wrong buttons you might find in the future you won't be allowed on the water at all :o :o

PJ

Peter_J, that's a very poor attitude - be grateful for what little you have.

No, I think fishermen and women should actively campaign for a better lot. In Queensland we are now excluded from 30% of the GBR and some fo the best inshore pelagic grounds in SEQ. People have to get together and make some noise to even the balance against the green movement.

Join The Fishing Party, lobby your local member, write to the papers, fill out the RISs. I do and have done in the past. At least I have a clear conscience and can say I did something about it.

APATHY IS THE ENEMY!

Jeremy

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Randall

I was informed by Gerry, one of the Rangers that patrols the Big W surrounds that the main reason for O/B bans were that it eliminates the possibility of a boat explosion and the subsequent ecological dissaster.

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Ecological disaster ? ??? >:(
WTF ... I can't see that at all , we are not talking oil tankers here. ::)
So it is alright to have a so called ecological disaster in Summerset and let that flow into Wivenhoe , but we can't have one in Wivenhoe. Gimme a break.. :P
What ecology are we talking about , it is a man made environment, full of fish put in there by man , plus a few catfish and eels which are hardly endangered.
To get a job making stupid decisions at one of these control boards, you just need a degree, common sense or even a brain are optional. ;)
Someone once gave me this appropriate analogy.
There have been a million books written about sex and you can study them all, but if you have never actually done it you could hardly be considered an expert. 8) 8)

PS. Jeremy, agree 100%.. I cant always say that. :D

Exactly Mr Hunt!!!!
You would`nt be Mike would you? :-X

Good points buddy!!

Randall.

BTW...what a beautiful environment!!! Love this dam on a glass-out day.

With Bass and Bellies like this on tap.

No Randall , the name's not Mike, that's my cousin. ;D ;D
I can be a bit of a C Hunt though, or so my mates tell me. :D

I would love to stick my quinnie with its 60 hp 4st . merc in there and rip around , and fish too of course. ::)
If there is one thing they should definatley keep out it's Jet Skis. :P

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Peter_J

chill out QLDR's.....think yourselves lucky you've only go to go 5 mins further up the road and you've got S'Set

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Hmmmm - I'd like to own the car that gets from Wivenhoe to Somerset in 5 mins - or is it a jet that you're talking about?

Muddie if you are talking about water you can do it 5 mins easy. It practically backs up to Summerset when full.
If you are talking about the dam walls then you might need 20 minutes.

Jeremy,

I'm not saying you shouldn't push for extra benefits but firstly acknowledge that things are already pretty good up your way as far as stocked impoundments go........some of us would kill to have Wivenhoe in our backyard.....even if it was by electric only :D

PJ

Peter,

well that is something that I don't know much about. I'm not into the freshwater SIP scene at all. Good on the people who do enjoy that stuff, and for those that are, I guess Big W would be a pretty appealing place.

Cheers,

Jeremy

Well I did the round trip - from the Wivenhoe dam wall to Somerset, then to the Wivenhoe wall (not backtracking) in May when I was showing some visitors the countryside. My age might distort time a bit, but there's no way I could get from dam wall to dam wall by the main roads without increasing the chance of a speeding fine dramatically.

Perhaps you know a back way that I don't - and that's entirely possible - which reduces travel time a lot.

It's of little consequence anyway. I removed freshwater fishing from my agenda once I found out I couldn't use my petrol motor on Wivenhoe - I live at Karalee and Wivenhoe is my closest freshwater impoundment of any consequence. When the idiots who make the decisions about boating on the dam come to their senses and remove that ban then perhaps I'll start again.

Until then, none of my hard earned goes towards the freshwater scene.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by swano

it was then that i saw the boating restrictions and my jaw dropped, how the heck do you fish or cruise a lake of this magnitude(sp) with an electric motor only?? my tinny only has a small minkota of 27lbs thrust and to travel to the other side of this lake and fish for a while and then return back would be down right dangerous if a nasty southerly blew up.

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Mmmmmm, sounds familiar, wish I'd said that. ;) ;D ;D ;D

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Peter_J

Jeremy,

I'm not saying you shouldn't push for extra benefits but firstly acknowledge that things are already pretty good up your way as far as stocked impoundments go........some of us would kill to have Wivenhoe in our backyard.....even if it was by electric only :D

PJ

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Mate,
I'd love it if they tore the bloody dam wall down & gave us our beloved river back. Was some beautiful country destroyed by its construction.
But that's never going to happen so we make the best of it.
I'd rather be fishing a wild river with wild fish than an artificial lake with artificially bred fish any day.
That whole river system is well & truly over regulated.

I's swap it all for a natural system again in a flash! Want to swap?

Cheers,

Fitzy..