Flying over Lake Eyre and its catchment in flood is a fantastic spectacle: the colours of the rejuvenated desert, the amazing birdlife, the patterns of the creeks and the enormity of the lake itself, all contribute to a brilliant experience. Normally an enormous dry salt-pan in outback central Australia, the lake has only filled a couple of times in recorded history.
We boarded our four-seater plane in William Creek in the red dirt country, flew low along the western side of the lake via the Warburton Groove to Birdsville and then returned over the giant catchment area of the Georgina, Diamantina and Coopers Creeks. This experience certainly deserves its place on the ‘100 things to do before I die’ list.
Peta Shahinger
Central Australia in Flood
