Lake St Clair

Lake St. Clair is my personal favourite impoundment plus one of the most spectacular and accessible bodies of water in the Hunter Valley. In 1983 it was formed by the Glennies Creek Dam, which plays an important role in improving the supply of water for homes, farms and industry in the Hunter Valley. The Dam wall is located 25 km from Singleton via Bridgman Road. It is 39km upstream from the junction of Glennies Creek and the Hunter River.

The creek and dam are named after James Glennie, a former captain in the Royal Navy who was granted creek frontage land near the Hunter River junction in 1824. The lake takes its name from the historic St Clair homestead now inundated by the waters.

Just upstream from Glennies Creek Dam, Fal Brook and Carrow Brook join to form Glennies Creek. The valley behind the dam, known as St Clair, was settled and cleared more than a century ago for grazing and cultivation.

Coal mining and agriculture, which both use large volumes of water, have been important industries in the Hunter Valley since Europeans first settled there. As these industries expanded, the demand for water increased. In addition, the population of the valley increased, so more water was also needed for people.

In 1958, the Department of Water Resources built Glenbawn Dam to supply water for industry, irrigation, stock and household use in the Hunter Valley. This dam is on the Hunter River upstream of Glennies Creek. By the 1970's Glenbawn Dam could no longer satisfy the Hunter Valley's demand for water. Another dam was needed to increase the water supply, and the site on Glennies Creek was selected. The Department of Water Resources began constructing Glennies Creek Dam in August 1980 and it was completed by June 1983.

North of Singleton in the foothills of the Barrington Tops National Park, the lake provides an expanse of water 15 kilometres long and up to 3 kilometres wide. It has a storage capacity of 283,000 million litres. About half the volume of Sydney Harbour. The dam wall is 67 metres high which is as tall as the highest sail on the Sydney Opera House.

When full, the lake has a surface area of 1620 ha, or more than two thousand football fields. Glennies Creek Dam is a curved earth and rockfill embankment with a concrete slab on the upstream face to prevent water from seeping through.

A 60 metre high control tower with variable level inlets allows the quality and temperature of water released from the dam to be selected.

This protects the animal and plant life within the river downstream of the dam by ensuring that the water released is similar to the water they would inhabit naturally.

The lake provides an excellent venue for fishing. It has been stocked with bass and perch. The latest stocking took place in October 1998 with the NSW Fisheries releasing 24,296 Australian Bass into the Dam.

The Dam is devoid of standing timber in large numbers. Most can be found close to the shore line, but then again this is where the Bass and Yellowbellies live. The foreshores of the lake provide the most attractive areas for fishing. Spinner Baits have proved to be very successful as you walk the Southern banks in particular. The banks below the road following the eastern shoreline is a particularly productive area early morning. Nestled among the undulating hills, the Dam is reasonably protected and in most conditions is quite suitable for the small tinnie or canoe. Although my last outing at the Dam tragically saw a life lost, reportably only the second in the Dams history, and as such safety must be paramount in the anglers mind.  

Although there is no five star accommodation at the Dam (in fact it's nil star) the camping area has free electric barbecue, hot water, showers and toilet facilities. A very pleasant evening can be had over the camp fire, exchanging the days fishing adventures with mates. This Dam is well worth the trip!