Burrinjuck Dam is situated near the headwaters of the Murrumbidgee River, 60km from Yass.

The dam holds 1,026,000 megalitres, almost twice as much water as Sydney Harbour.  It covers an area of 5,500 hectares.  For up-to-date storage info, visit www.waterinfo.nsw.gov.au

Construction of the dam began in 1909, but due to the labour and materials shortages faced during World War 1, construction wasn't complete until 20 years later.  It was an extraordinary engineerring feat of its time and still remains one of the world's largest irrigation dams.  More than one thousand people lived at Burrinjuck during its construction and many of the old sites can still be seen today.  The people of the village were able to come in and out of Burrinjuck on a narrow gauge railway line that was active during the construction years.  Most of the line has been pulled up and is now the road on which you are able to drive on, however, when the tragedy of drought strikes the Lake, you can still see some of the line where it lays. 

Many photos of the history of Burrinjuck can be viewed at the State Park office.

The name Burrinjuck comes from the Aboriginal words Booren Yiack, meaning precipitous mountain.

The dam provides an average of about 1.2 million ML a year for the irrigation of the Murrumbidgee area, for crops, river flows, town and domestic supplies.

Recreation

Burrinjuck dam attracts a quarter of a million tourists each year. 

There are two Tourist Parks to choose from when staying at the dam.  One is the Burrinjuck Leaisure Resort and the other is the Burrinjuck Waters State Park.  Both have cabin, cottages, powered or unpowered site accommodation.  Both have boat ramps, various recreation activities and general stores for all your basic needs.

At the State Park, you can hand feed Rosellas and King Parrots that regularly visit the picnic areas of the park.  Seed can be purchased at the park store. 

Kangaroos graze freely at Burrinjuck and are known to get quite close and friendly with visitors.

Fishing is a popular sport at Burrinjuck, as it is stocked with trout, Murray cod, perch and Atlantic Salmon.

As well as fishing, Burrinjuck is also a popular spot for all kinds of water sports, such as water skiing, tubing, parasailing, windsurfing and of course, swimming.

So come for a day, a weekend or longer and enjoy the peace, history, nature and fun that is Lake Burrinjuck!