Top ten famous lakes of Nepal

Nepal, the world’s richest country in terms of beauty and natural resources, possess enigmatic lakes that are found in various geographies of Nepal.  The lakes of Nepal are impressively splendid and look superb with their extremely elegant beauty. People from different corners come to Nepal in order to be the witness of phenomenal sites of lakes which reflect the blue mountains in their bosom. And most importantly, crystal-clear water of lakes which provides shelter to the numerous species along with spellbinding views.

According to the survey of National Lake Conservation Development Committee, there are 5, 358 lakes in Nepal, including 2,323 glacial lakes and other tectonic, ox-bow-lakes. The Himalayan region lakes embody the treasure of the country which carries the religious, traditional, and spiritual beliefs of the people. Moreover, the eye-catching lakes are the main source of attraction; explores and adventurous visitors can come to excavate the beauty of lakes that reside under the Himalayan range.

Though Nepal has more than 5 thousand lakes, here, today, I am going to explain about the ten biggest and famous lakes of Nepal.

Gokyo Lakes

Gokyo lakes consisted of 19 lakes, located in the Sagarmatha National Park in the Solukhumbu district, at the altitude of 4,700-5,000 meter above the sea level. The lakes possess the world’s purest and highest freshwater.

Visitors make their initial acquaintance with the Longpongo, and then Toboche Tsho, Thanak Cho, and then the Gokyo Cho which is one of the main lakes of the system and covers an area of 65.67 ha. The lakes receive freshwater from various sources, such as seepage from the Ngozumpa Glacier, streams come from the Renjo La of the north-west and the east part, respectively.

Furthermore, Gokyo Lake which come under Ramsar site carries religious significance as well. The lakes are popular pilgrimage sites for the Hindu and Buddhist followers. The devotees come from different parts of the world in order to take a holy bath, especially in Janai Purnima and Gangadashara festivals. The site is taken as the place of Nag Devata- the Snake God. Also, we find beautiful temples of Vishnu and Lord Shiva in the west part of the lakes.

Gokyo, because of its diverse characteristics, it becomes successful in winning the heart of foreigners. The site can be reached within two days of a walk from Namche Bazaar through the Gokyo Lakes Trek.

Phewa Lake

Phewa Lake, formerly known as Baidam Tal, is one of the most visited, and renowned sites of Nepal. The lake is situated at the southern part of the Pokhara Valley which includes Pokhara city, Sarangkot, and Kaskikot. The most amazing site of this lake is Tal Barahi temple which resides at the heart of Phewa lake.

Marvellous mountain peaks such as Annapurna, Machhapuchhre (Fishtail), and Dhaulagiri show their vivid reflection on the surface of the beautiful lake.

Besides scenic beauty, a freshwater lake is also well known for water sports; paragliding is one of the famous sports to fly over the Fewa lake.

Tilicho Lake

Tilicho Lake is Nepal’s one of the beautiful Lakes which is located at the highest altitude of 4919 meters and only 55 kilometres away from the hustle and bustle of Pokhara city. Tilicho, a glacial lake is a popular tourist destination which is in the Annapurna range of the Himalayas. Also, the site is famous for hiking that goes through the Annapurna Circuit trek and takes an additional 3/ 4 days to reach the base camp of Tilicho.

Tilicho lake provides an adventurous journey to the risk-takers who love to accept geographical challenges. Commonly, most of the visitors prefer the Annapurna Circuit route, crosses the watershed between Manang and Kali Gandaki valleys. As an alternative, we can even make our journey fantastic by taking an alternative route from the north side. This route is gaining much popularity among the tourists, nowadays. But, there are no tea houses or lodges near the Tilicho Base Camp. The snowy lake is wrapped by enormous, beautiful mountains like Khangsar, Nilgiri, Tilicho and Muktinath peak.

Apart from natural beauty, the place is also recognised for religious beliefs as well. In the epic of Ramayana, the description of Tilicho can be found as the ancient lake Kak Bhusundi Lake.

Rara Lake

Rara Lake, the biggest and the deepest lake of Nepal, is located in remote area districts: Mugu and Jumla. The total area of lake occupies 1583 ha (6.11 sq mi) including the wetlands, and is declared as a Ramsar site in September 2007.

Rara lake, a paradise-like place lies at the altitude of 2,990 m above the sea level. The enticing view of the lake compels people to visit the site even with enormous difficulty in roadways. Also, visitors can choose airways; a tour begins from the Kathmandu airport to Nepalgunj. Likewise, from Nepalgunj to Mugu, visitors can choose either 19 days long trek or a few hours of helicopter travel.

Despite the geographical complexity, the place is appreciated immensely by various visitors such as a GORP founder  Bill Greer explained Rara as a “shimmering blue jewel set in a ring of snowy peaks”.

Begnas Lake

Another prominent lake, Begnas Lake, is a freshwater lake located in the south-east part of Kaski, Pokhara. Unlike other Himalayan glacial lakes, the lake usually utilised for irrigation purpose and caged fisheries.

The splendid area of Begnas Lake is crowded with huge flocks of tourists who enjoy the phenomenal beauty of Begnas. Additionally, Begnas has a large swampy area and currently, it is used for paddy crops. People of the surrounding lakes are benefited through their tourism-centric business and agricultural products.

Gosainkunda Lake

Gosainkunda is also one of the biggest alpine freshwater lake, situated at an altitude of 4, 380 meters in the Langtang National Park, Rasuwa district. The lake is categorised under the Ramsar site, including 108 small and average size lakes.

The Gosainkunda area is portrayed as the major tourist destination of Nepal. Tourists can experience the mesmerising view of Gosainkunda area, following the four days long Dhunche-Helambu trekking route and adjoins the another popular Langtang Valley trek in the same district. The treks provide quite impressive accommodations; residents of the place offer varieties of food, snacks, tea to the tourists.

Moreover, the lake also reflects religious and cultural values as well. According to Hindu mythology, Gosainkunda is home of Lord Shiva and Gauri. Its freshwater is considered not only pure but also holy and sacred. Visitors from India and Nepal come to take a holy bath in the occasion of Janai Purnima and Ganga Dashara.

Shey Phoksundo Lake

Shey Phoksundo lake, another most beautiful treasure of Nepal, is located in Shey Phoksundo National Park in the Dolpa district. The alpine freshwater oligotrophic lake spreads at the height of 3,611.5 meters covering 494 ha and has 145 m depth. The exotic lake might be too dangerous for diving.

The spectacular view, surrounded by the hills adds more beauty to this renowned lake. Despite its geographic and climate difficulty, the place is getting space among the tourists because of its magnificent scenario.

Mansarovar Lake

Man Sarowar also called Mapam Yumtso, is a high altitude lake located near the Mount Kailash. This beautiful lake contains freshwater of Kailash Glaciers and resides in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. The lake shares a deep spiritual faith among the religious people of Buddhism, Hinduism, Bon, and Jainism.

Baraha Lake 

Baraha lake is the biggest lake of Surkhet which is situated at the Taranga VDC, 10 km away from the headquarters of Surkhet, Birendranagar. This beautiful lake covers 4 acres of land in the dense forest.

Visitors, just within 7 hours of walk, can experience the enthralling view of the lake. The most surprising thing about this lake is, the leaves that have fallen into the water vanishes instantly. But, unfortunately, the lake is not as famous as it has to be; as it is located in a remote area of Nepal and far away from the central capital. Therefore, it is essential to introduce this enigmatic lake among the visitors.

Rupa Lake

Rupa lake, a third biggest freshwater lake of Pokhara, situated in the Pokhara valley covering an area about 1.35 sq. Km. Talbesi stream is the main feeder of this lake.  The beautiful lake is the habitat of 36 species of waterbirds and other numerous flora and fauna also can be spotted there.

The lake is also one of the major tourist attraction areas where visitors can get boating experience with the calm and tranquil surroundings. Besides tourism, it is useful for farmers as they are practising fish farming.

To sum up, Nepal, the smallest country which is situated between the two gigantic nations India and China, is full of beautiful lakes where visitors from the different world can experience the spellbinding landscape with the charismatic scenario of lakes.