BRIGADOON’s longtime Lady in the Lake landmark on Campersic Road, used for decades as a rain gauge for the community, is set to return after being absent for almost five years.

After winter rains, the lake would fill and the lady would stand beside a willow growing on an island in the lake with a demure gesture, gazing across the water.

There she stood on a small island in a seasonal lake on a private Brigadoon property for more than two decades, becoming a familiar reference point for residents, and for equestrians and motorists travelling backroads to the State Equestrian Centre.

Former owner Lauren Hawkins said the water level would rise to her ankles or her knees and that was used by the community to gauge how much rain had fallen in a given season.

“Everyone kind of uses it to see how much rain we’ve had so far in the year or so far in the season,” she said.

Ms Hawkins said the statue’s disappearance followed an attempted theft.

“Someone drove onto the dry lakebed in the middle of the night and tried to steal her.

“We found this out when we saw the tyre marks and a wooden plank from where they’d obviously gotten bogged in the thick and muddy silt lakebed.”

Ms Hawkins said although the theft was unsuccessful, the statue’s base was loosened by the attempt.

“They’d managed to tilt the base, and when the next winter came, she fell into the water,” she said.

When the water level dropped the following summer, the family retrieved the statue and discovered further damage.

“When the water went down again next summer, we went to rescue her, and the glue around her head had weakened and her head had fallen off,” Ms Hawkins said.

“She’s had a bit of an adventure.”

The statue was recovered in April 2021 and stored at the property.

Ms Hawkins said her father later repaired the statue but reinstalling it proved difficult.

“She’s some sort of solid concrete or gravel mix,” she said.

“She’s very hefty.”

Ms Hawkins said the enigmatic lady was a feature of the Campersic property when her grandparents first bought the property back in 2004.

New owners Tini Mincher and her family said they were surprised to learn how much the lady meant to the community.

“It feels really special that we’ve got a property that the whole community has embraced,” Ms Mincher said.

Ms Mincher said restoring the lady felt like a responsibility after the strong community response.

“We feel like putting the lady back in her rightful place is our gift to a community that so far has really embraced us very warmly,” she said.

The statue’s head has since been reattached, but further work is required before she can be returned to the lake.

“There’s some discolouration to her face that we’re looking to fix,” Ms Mincher said.

“We have no idea how we’re going to right the plinth.

“It’s quite heavy and it’s quite set in place (in the lake).”

Ms Mincher said she had already attempted to move the base from a kayak, without success.

“When I tried to push it, it wouldn’t budge,” she said.

Her partner and friends now plan to dive the lake to inspect the plinth and determine how it is anchored and how it interacts while the lake has a body of water.

Restoration is expected to take place early next year, once water levels drop enough to allow access to the island.

“We want to do it in such a way to make sure that she can stay in place for another 50 years,” Ms Mincher said.

The family is inviting anyone with knowledge of the statue’s installation or access to suitable equipment to get in touch to assist with the restoration via hello@daintree-estate.au