Josh and Emma Eden, owners of The Halfway Cafe at Wagga Boat Club, decided to host a fundraiser over Saturday and Sunday for the Save the Lake Fighting Fund.

"The fund helps pay for infrastructure and future development for the lake without having to rely on the council," Mr Eden explained.

"The weekend was a success, I broke my sales records, and Sunday was particularly busy. I had a really good response.

"It was a mix of customers. There were a lot of regular customers who have been coming to us every weekend and also some new people."

Mr Eden said he and his wife had opened the cafe in August 2019, and have never seen the lake as busy as it has been in recent weeks.

Storms in February delivered a significant boost to water levels meaning Lake Albert was at its highest in two years.

Mr Eden said as he has been setting up the shop at 6am, there were already keen residents out on the water skiing or paddling.

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"To see how the lake has changed from the casual walk around it to having all that water and suddenly there is a minimum of four or five boats out there," he said.

"I always knew there was an issue with the lake, but I don't think I understood it properly.

"Now that I have a business out there and I am involved with the Boat Club, I know exactly how much the lack of water has affected the area."

Mr Eden said he thinks the success of the weekend's fundraiser came down to a couple of factors.

"The Boat Club paid for a jumping castle for the kids, which they went crazy for," he said.

"We also had food that didn't cost an arm and a leg, so it was a cheap outing for local families.

"Also, a big thank you to Leighton Marshall who volunteered his time and a huge thanks to the general community who supported us."

Mr Eden said they would be doing the final count of money raised on Tuesday.

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