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    CREATIVITY: A life-size emu that Dave Jones and Bronwyn Razem made from scrap metal and woven fibres for the biennial Lake Bolac Eel Festival.

Lake Bolac Eel Festival postponed

30 September 2020

Organisers of Lake Bolac Eel Festival, one of the most unique festivals in regional Australia, have postponed their March event until 2022.

They confirmed a new date for the award-winning event will now be the weekend of March 25 to 27, a year later than planned.

The eel festival, a biennial event that has attracted people from across the country to Lake Bolac foreshore since 2005, celebrates the annual migration of the short-finned eel, or kuyang, and highlights the lake’s cultural, indigenous and environmental importance to the region.

Festival chair Chris Lawton, in announcing the new date, said the committee had been forced to make a difficult decision to postpone the 2021 event.



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“We are, however, looking forward to an amazing festival in March 2022,” he said.

“The festival has been rescheduled as a result of the need for community safety and social distancing during the current COVID-19 pandemic. The continuing uncertainty has made organising a festival for early 2021 very difficult.

“We regret taking this step, but we cannot be sure of what will be allowed by way of events and social gatherings over the next year.

“It seems that life will not return to normal for some time, and, as a consequence of this uncertainty, and to ensure the health and safety of the community, our volunteers, musicians, artists, stall-holders, contractors and of course our wonderful audience, the committee has agreed to postpone until March 2022. 

“‘The Lake as Home’ was to be the theme for the 2021 festival. The lake is very beautiful as we come into spring, with eels, birds and other life in abundance. Unfortunately, we humans cannot gather there, at least in large numbers.”

Tickets for the festival will be valid for 2022, but a refund is available by emailing festival@eelfestival.org.au with ticket details.

While a full festival is off the agenda for 2021, organisers plan to run ‘one or two’ smaller events next year.

The entire September 30, 2020 edition of The Weekly Advertiser is available online. READ IT HERE!

The entire September 30, 2020 edition of AgLife is available online. READ IT HERE!