‘Barmera’ comes from the Ngawait Barmerara Meru clan, the original occupants of this area, and is said to mean ‘water place’. The first Europeans to the area called the kidney-shaped water body Lake Bonney, and gave the name Barmera to the lakeside town established in 1859. Both the lake and town became famous in 1964 when Donald Campbell came here to attempt a world water speed record. Today, the region is a holiday haven. Yachties, waterskiers and windsurfers enjoy the lake, while canoeists, fishers and birders like to lose themselves in the spectacular backwaters.

FAST FACTS!

• Lake Bonney was named after drover Charles Bonney who passed here on the first overland drove from Sydney to Adelaide in 1838
• Though failing to beat the record, Campbell’s boat Bluebird reached a speed of 347.5 kilometres an hour
• A weir at Napper’s Bridge controls the flow of water in and out of the lake
• Lake Bonney has a 15km circumference and reaches a depth of 8m
• Japanese, Germans and Italians were interned in South Australia’s largest wartime camp near here. A display at the Barmera Visitor Centre tells their story