Where is warragamba dam located

The dam was built using concrete blocks which were placed with the help of overhead cableways. Construction took 12 years with the dam opened in It took 1, workers to build, most living in an adjacent town specifically created to house them.

The township of Warragamba had shops, schools and pubs, at its peak with a population of 3, Workers would get to the dam via two suspension bridges. Some may remember one of these, situated just below the dam wall which remained as a tourist attraction until when it was damaged beyond repair by bushfire. Tragically, 15 men lost their lives during construction and a memorial now stands near the Visitors Centre, within Haviland Park.

Many will remember visiting the park, crossing the suspension bridge, walking through the dam tunnels and visiting the nearby African Lion safari in the s. Note: I try to be as accurate as possible but make no guarantees. To see past notifications, please visit all dam notifications. Flood notifications indicate the dam is releasing controlled or uncontrolled flows, likely to cause downstream flooding.

Regulated releases are when our operations may impact landholders immediately downstream or we are releasing higher than normal flows.

Take a self-guided walk around the dam grounds to multiple viewing platforms, interpretive signs and historic machinery. When completed in , Warragamba Dam was the world's tallest and largest domestic water supply dam.

It is metres high, metres long and contains 3 million tonnes of concrete. The Warragamba Dam Workers' Memorial commemorates the 14 dam builders who died during construction. Warragamba Dam wall, viewed through a zoom lens from the Eighteenth Street Lookout in Warragamba township. Warragamba Dam's grounds are open every day of the year. The visitor centre is closed only on Christmas Day and Good Friday.

Warragamba township's Eighteenth Street Lookout provides views of the dam wall and auxiliary spillway. Warragamba Dam's grounds feature many viewing platforms with provide visitors with excellent views of the dam wall and lake.

The visitor centre viewing platforms provide excellent views of Lake Burragorang and the dam wall. Next to the visitor centre is a giant valve, which was used to control the flow of water from the dam into the twin Warragamba pipelines.

Warragamba Dam's modern new visitor centre hosts permanent and temporary exhibitions, children's activities and video presentations. One of the giant valves, since replaced in the Warragamba Dam valve house, used to control the flow of water from the dam into the twin Warragamba pipelines. Warragamba Dam's landscaped grounds include modern seating as well as picnic shelters, drinking water and toilets. The Burragorang Room in the visitor centre boasts sweeping views of the lake and dam wall, and hosts children's activities and video presentations.

You'll be amazed by the interactive 'drops of wisdom' exhibit in the 'Water for Life' exhibition at the visitor centre. The 'drops of wisdom' interactive table is a highlight of the permanent exhibition at the Warragamba Dam visitor centre.

WaterNSW acknowledge the traditional custodians of the lands and waters on which we work and pay our respects to all elders past, present and emerging.

Skip to a section on the page. Search toggle Home Contact us Alerts and updates Search this site:. Insights Portal Real-time data WaterLive. Status Open to Public. The visitors centre will remain closed until further notice. Lookout points View at the Visitor Centre There are three viewing platforms at the Warragamba Dam Visitor Centre which offer excellent vistas of the upstream dam wall and Lake Burragorang. Eighteenth Street Warragamba A few minutes drive from the dam through the Warragamba township, the Eighteenth Street Lookout provides a view of the auxiliary spillway and a distant view of Warragamba Dam wall.

The Warragamba Experience Top 5 things to see and do 1. Be photographed with the 'quiet beast' Stand on one of the viewing platforms and have your photo taken with the 'quiet beast'.

Step back in time Take a self-guided walk around the dam grounds and discover the history of this monumental undertaking. Soak up the views Gaze down upon the dam wall and a small part of Lake Burragorang from the deck of the magnificent visitor centre, perched high on a rocky outcrop, or head down to the dam wall on weekends and public holidays ONLY for a close up view of the Lake.

Step into the future Step inside the modern visitor centre and enjoy an even better view of the dam. Relax with a picnic Relax with family and friends in the landscaped grounds. Exhibitions Located about 65 kilometres west of Sydney in a narrow gorge on the Warragamba River, Warragamba Dam is one of the largest domestic water supply dams in the world.

How the dam works Warragamba Dam supplies water to more than 5 million people living in Sydney and the lower Blue Mountains. Early history A local Gundungurra Aboriginal creation story tells of two dreamtime spirits Mirragan - a large tiger cat, and his quarry Gurangatch - a part fish part reptile who lived in a lagoon where the Wollondilly and Wingecarribee rivers meet. Why the dam was built The Warragamba River offered two important advantages as a site for a major dam - a large catchment area, and a river flowing through a narrow gorge.

How the dam was built Warragamba Dam was a major engineering feat of the mid th Century. Later improvements To meet modern dam safety standards, in the late s the dam wall was strengthened and raised by five metres. Lake and Catchment Size Measurement Area 75km 2 Length of lake 52km Length of foreshores km Maximum depth of reservoir m Catchment area 9,km 2 Annual average rainfall mm.

Dam safety notifications Alerts will be issued in the following unlikely events: White Alert Trigger - Storage level has reached RL Amber alert Trigger - Storage level has reached RL Flood operations Trigger - Spillway flows controlled are expected. Drum gate starts to open — Trigger RL The Warragamba Dam Visitor Centre is open on weekends and public holidays. There are also a number of temporary exhibitions featured at the museum. The location of the dam was first suggested in The deep narrow gorge of the Warragamba River, at the exit to Burragorang Valley, was identified as an ideal place for a dam by Polish explorer Count Paul Strzelecki.

It took 12 years and 1, workers to build the dam, which opened in It was such a major undertaking that a town was built next to the site to house the dam builders. A local Gundungurra Aboriginal creation story tells of two dreamtime spirits Mirragan — a large tiger cat, and his quarry Gurangatch — a part fish part reptile who lived in a lagoon where the Wollondilly and Wingecarribee rivers meet. During a long cross-country battle in the Dreaming Gunyungalung , the deep gorges of the Burragorang Valley were gouged out.

It was this valley that was flooded when Warragamba Dam was built. Want to find out how full the dam is this week? Hit the button below! Dam Levels. It was an engineering masterpiece of the mid th Century — and it still takes your breath away today. Take a self-guided walk around the dam grounds and discover the history of this monumental undertaking.