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DISCOVER THE HISTORY OF

eildon boat club

Lake Eildon’s premier boating club

In 2020 We celebrated 70 Years on the Lake!

In 1950, 25 founding members, looking to capitalise on the popularity of boating on the Lake, constituted the Eildon Boat Club.

Before the original reservoir was built in the 1920s, fishers were known to form camps on the Goulburn and Delatite Rivers. Sugarloaf Reservoir was created in 1927 and as the reservoir began to fill, the fishing camps moved to its shores and boats began to appear.

In 1950, 25 founding members, looking to capitalise on the popularity of boating on the Lake, constituted the Eildon Boat Club. EBC’s first fees were set at one guinea for initial entry and a further one guinea for the annual subscription.

With the assistance of the State Rivers and Water Supply Commission (SR & WSC), the Club was granted a lease in what is now named Anderson Harbour, after the club’s founding secretary, Hugh Anderson. The SR & WSC helped clear the harbour and build the original roads, car parks, toilets and other facilities. Their assistance was recompensed through a rental agreement with the Club. Members burnt the trees felled by the Commission, and numerous working bees saw the construction of a slipway, moorings, a workshop and a caretaker’s house. 

This spirit of generosity continues today with members donating time, money, expertise and even machinery to aid in the maintenance or development of Club infrastructure and services.

Boating on Lake Eildon was flourishing well before Sir Henry Bolte officially opened the Lake on October 19, 1956 when EBC members were invited to participate in a sail past to mark the occasion. A few years later in 1960 EBC held their first Club Sail Past and the tradition has been held every year since. You can find out more about the history of Sail Past at the Club below.

In the early 1960’s the Club’s first houseboat arrived bringing about the need for EBC to build marinas followed with our first clubhouse in 1967.  In 1998 a new Clubhouse was opened overlooking Anderson Harbour, since then we have had several more refurbishments and refreshes and today our clubhouse sets a high standard on the Lake!

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Members Today
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Houseboats & cruisers

From our humble beginnings in 1950, today we support a fleet of over 400 houseboats and a membership base nearing 1,000, as well as hundreds of dry storage sheds, multiple slipways, hardstands, workshops and residential houses. 

In 2020, we celebrated 70 years on the Lake, and it is through the continued support and dedication of our members, Board of Directors and the entire EBC team that we are able to offer such premier services, infrastructure, and facilities.

At EBC family and friends (old and new) come together to enjoy the magical ‘serenity’ of the Lake’s boating lifestyle and our Club’s premier facilities and services, all against a backdrop of magical sunrises, brilliant sunsets, and the chandelier of stars in the night sky.