Flying Over Kati Thanda (Lake Eyre)

I admit it. I got duped.

I met a tourist in Oodnadatta who had taken a scenic plane ride over Lake Eyre. “Was it worth it to fly over?” I asked. “It was a great experience,” he said, “Just stunning!”

So later on, I plucked down $200 for a one-hour flight over Lake Eyre, or, Kati Thanda, as the aboriginals know it. The flight was slightly disappointing. From the air, the lake was just a partially full body of water. Like any other. I should have saved my money.

Going to the area of Lake Eyre was one of the reasons I routed my ride in this direction. It is stunning in many ways that didn’t require a plane ride to enjoy. Facts alone just has me amazed. The lake area is huge; the largest salt lake in Australia, and the 13th largest lake in the world. Its drainage basin covers over 20% of Australia. I was enamored with the fact that there was this huge sunken piece of land below sea level (Lake Eyre is about 45 feet below sea level) which constituted a major piece of Australia. This is Australia’s version of America’s Death Valley– an expanse sunken below the level of the sea, but much more gigantic in area. I had directed my bike here to see the huge expanse of salt. A gigantic salt lake– amazing!

But something happened this year. There was buzz that Lake Eyre was full- that it hasn’t been this full for 50 years! It is usually a dry salt bed, but this year, because of the major rains in the north, including Cyclone Trevor that hit the north in March, the rivers feeding the lake was brimming full and madly making its way to the lake, filling it to capacity.

Except that the buzz was not true.

All the hype was being broadcast by ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corp.) News because of all the flooding in the river basins feeding the lake. (Part of it was on the Birdsville Track). It was predicted that Lake Eyre would fill up. But it never did and the rivers stopped giving out its water to the lake. Still, the tourist companies, and ABC, kept broadcasting that prediction.

And tourists kept coming. Because of its expanse, every Australian knows about Lake Eyre; it’s like a pilgrimage site, second only to Uluru. Tourist company vehicles and all sorts of other tourists appeared every day on the Oodnaddatta Track, all there to catch the glimpse of a “full” Lake Eyre. And paying a hefty sum for “scenic” flights over Lake Eyre. Like silly ol’ me. (You can see ABC’s overblown report here, here, and here.)

As I flew over the lake, I could see large areas where there was no water. This was not a “miracle” year.

I learned all about the hype from the Lake Eyre Yacht Club, which I visited in Marree. Its mission, I would learn later from their website, was to “collect and disseminate correct information about the lake.” I enjoyed conversing with the man there (I never did get his name) as he was quite intelligent, and backed up my hunches from being on the plane ride. The lake is not full– and will never be, at least not this year. Tourists are pouring into this area for a non-fact. Lake Eyre Yacht Club was like a breath of fresh air in the middle of Marree– some place that sticks to true facts.

All in all, though, the flight was not a loss. I wanted to see the salt flats, and that wish was fulfilled, even though that may not have been the desire of the other tourists. Also, the flight I was on was at 7 a.m. in the morning, which gave a beautiful sunrise over Lake Eyre, water or no water.

And I found that there is a benefit to being a solo vacationer. I got the front row seat next to the pilot.