Choolalie Lake in Maralinga Tjarutja: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Choolalie Lake is a Maralinga Tjarutja water, South Australia side. Everything around it is dry rangeland. At 9.94 sq km this is proper open water rather than a pond. There is roughly 21 km of bank, more than one visit can cover properly. Ceduna at 289 km is the nearest place to stop. Then Coober Pedy, 343 km, and Streaky Bay, 378 km. What else is close: Yarle Lakes after 5.4 km. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Choolalie Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. On Choolalie Lake the obvious spot is not always the productive one. Approach from downwind so your line does not land ahead of you.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, January reads 25°C and July reads 12°C. Winter is simply the pleasant end of an unbroken season. Spring, September into November, and autumn, March into May, are the strong stretches. The wet months move levels about, which shifts the fishing with them. The season on Choolalie Lake rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Mapping flags this water as intermittent: it can be dry for part of the year, so check before travelling. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. Gates get locked out of season on water like this. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Should this one be busy, Yarle Lakes is 5.4 km off. The position on Choolalie Lake is worth confirming on the day.