Canberra's newest aquatic attraction is proof that interesting things can happen when men go fishing.
Wetting lines in the Murray River on a camping trip 18 months ago, three friends were bouncing around ideas about a possible business venture.
The result is a brightly coloured inflatable fun park bobbing atop the lake at Tarcoola Reach which, in this week's gusty conditions, was receiving the best possible pre-opening wind tests.
Chained to concrete sleepers on the bed of Lake Burley Griffin, Canberra Aqua Park will open to customers for the first time on Saturday and continue right through summer until March 31.
Initially, the three Melbourne business partners thought that Canberra's slow-moving bureaucracy and the unknown quality of the lake water would kill off the project before summer.
But as it turned out, neither presented anywhere near the problems expected.
Expecting a firm "no" from their initial correspondence with the National Capital Authority, Will Yeap and his business partners were collectively surprised when a positive response came back.
"We proposed three different locations and this one [at Tarcoola Reach] was by far the best," Mr Yeap said.
"The other worry was the lake's water quality but then, when we looked into more closely, it wasn't an issue at all. And this place here [at Tarcoola Reach] is actually one of the cleanest areas of the lake.
"I think the lake carries a stigma about its water quality that it really doesn't deserve."
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For $20 admission, anyone over five years old can receive the safety briefing, sign the waiver, put on a life jacket and swim or wade out, then bounce, jump, swing or slide for up to an hour.
Access to the aqua park will be one-hour sessions on the hour throughout the day, with each session capped to 100 participants. People can book a specific session through the website, or just turn up.
If the water quality goes south or the wind is too high, they'll shut down operations.
"It's all about fun and safety; we're thinking this is a great place for parents to get their kids off their devices and burn off some energy," Mr Yeap said.
- Canberra Aqua Park opens on Saturday. Tickets can be booked at canberraaquapark.com
