THOUSANDS of people braved intense heat and a waterless lake to converge in a mass of sweaty bodies at Green Lake across the long weekend for the annual Maitreya Festival.
Tough conditions did not deter the 2000-plus crowd who celebrated the festival’s seventh year with a huge line-up of international and Australian DJs.
According to the festival’s website “live art creation, accompanied by live music creation releases an explosion of cultural interaction that goes beyond time, space, and the barriers of language” with punters encouraged to “roll in the mud, draw in the sand, hug a stranger and join a workshop” throughout the four-day festival.
Held in the Buloke Shire for the first time, the council embraced the opportunity to host the event after the Central Goldfields Shire shunned the festival after organisers failed to apply for the appropriate permits.
While the festival had been held at Carisbrook Racecourse and Recreation Reserve for the past two years, this year’s festival saw punters heading further north after a Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal ruling prevented the festival being held at Carisbrook.
At the weekend, the nearby Sea Lake community welcomed the festival with open arms as it injected thousands of dollars into the local economy.
Reed Trembath of the Top Cafe said the economic benefits for the local community extended far beyond the four-day festival.
“It’s been brilliant,” Mr Trembath said.
“We’ve extended our trade and have worked an extra 50 hours over the last week, leading up to the festival.”
Mr Trembath said the festival had helped to put Sea Lake on the map and had provided a boost for local retailers.
“It’s the icing on the cake really,” Mr Trembath said.
“They seem to have plenty of dollars to spend.”
These sentiments were echoed by Sea Lake Foodworks manager Andrea Hannig.
“For us it was absolutely huge,” Ms Hannig said.
“I would hate to see anyone grumble, this means a lot for us.”
The local supermarket also extended its trading hours across the weekend to cater for the influx of visitors, extending its usual Saturday trade by six hours and opening from 11am to 6pm on both Sunday and Monday.
As festival-goers stocked up on water, ice, thongs, sunscreen, insect repellant and toilet paper, Ms Hannig said she only had praise for the event, noting the economic benefits flowed right through the small community.
“The local clubs in Sea Lake also benefited from it,” she said, noting many of the town’s sporting clubs operated their own food and drink stalls within the festival grounds.
