Tag: Holy Lake

Erdaohai Lake

Located just outside of Songpan in the Mounigou Gulley Scenic Area is the breathtaking Erdaohai Lake. While this is not the only lake or scenic spot located in the park, it is one of the two most famous places in the Mounigou Gulley, ensuring the park is known by this name (The other park in Mounigou Gulley is Zhaga Waterfall.)
Known for its stunning colour, this lake is set at an altitude of 3,385 meters above sea level and covers an area of approximately 16,027 square meters. With karst caves located underneath, the plateau sink-lake is fed by the surging undercurrent. At its deepest point the lake is approximately 28 meters deep, and it is this changing depth of the mountain water that gives the lake its vibrant and shifting colours. Located at such a high elevation, the lake not only reflects the forest around its edges, but the living sky above.

One of the beautiful lakes in Erdaohai

Other Attractions Within the Park

In Erdaohai Park, there are actually a number of different lakes/pools that guests like to visit. Each of the lakes or pools is a different colour, and the sparkling clear mountain water displays the interesting elements of each place. This includes: Lovers Emerald Pool, Jade Lake, Toudaohai Lake, Swan Lake, Singing Spring, the Travertine Annual Rings, Jade-Dropping Pool, Grass Lake, and Hot Spring Lake.

Besides these, one of the lakes is known for the algae that grows in it that looks like the branches of a pine tree, while at another point in the park there is an actual pine tree that seems to grow straight out of a rock face. Also, worth spotting amongst the trees is the Karast Cave Group, with several of the caves extending deep into the earth. No matter where you look the park is beautiful with the forest, wildflowers, occasional animal, and the wide open sky.

Inside Erdaohai Lake

Getting There

When going to Erdaohai Lake, your best option is to take a taxi or private vehicle out of the town. We took a taxi, and for the price quoted us, he was willing to wait for us for the three hours we wanted to spend in the park. At the time of writing, the entrance ticket to Erdaohai Lake cost ¥70, but to see the stunning colour of each of the lakes is well worth it.

Inside Erdaohai Lake

Once inside Erdaohai Lake, the walk will take approximately 2-3 hours depending on the speed at which you want to walk and the amount of times you stop to take in the view. The lakes themselves are set further back into the park with the first appearing after about 15 minutes of walking.

A smooth wooden boardwalk leads visitors through the park making it a nice walk, however, for those with mobility issues, there are a number of steps in the park. Essentially the park tours a mountain side, so the height of the terrain changes as you go further in, but the boardwalk takes it from being a hike to a walk. When walking in the park, you will come to a couple of forks in the road, however, the entire park is set up as a loop, so by taking one road over the other, you aren’t actually missing anything.

Beautiful view from inside Erdaohai lake

If you walk right to the back of the park, guests are rewarded with a hot spring in which you may choose to dip your feet for a few minutes. However, don’t be surprised: the hot spring might not be as “hot” as you expect. The spring deserves this title because it never dips below 10°C in a year, which at the elevation is significant enough to differentiate it from the surrounding lakes. (To the amusement of those who sat at the pool longer, we saw more than one guest startle at their initial test of the water.)

When visiting the park, dress for the weather, and make sure you bring a water bottle. There are gazebos and benches scattered throughout the park if you want to enjoy a picnic lunch, but to do so will require you to bring the food with you from town as there is no place to buy it there.

Prayer flags in Erdaohai Lake

September 1, 2016
Yamdrok Yumtso (Yamdrok Lake)

Yamdrok, Yamdroktso (ཡར་འབྲོག་གཡུ་མཚོ། ), or Yamdrok Yumtso, is a breathtaking lake lying between the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, and the town of Gyantse. Yamdrok Lake is viewable along the old Friendship Highway that links Tibet with Nepal, and is a favorite route for those heading to Everest Base Camp. Sitting at an altitude of 4,441 meters above sea level, the lake is 130 kilometers in length and 70 kilometers in wide at its furthest spot. Yamdrok is the largest inland and freshwater lake on the northern Himalayan range with an average depth of 20 to 40 meters, and the deepest point being 60 meters.
Summer time views of the lake offer green carpeted slopes on the surrounding hills.

Yamdrok Lake has a unique coral shape with numerous streams feeding it from nearby mountains, hence the locals refer to it as Coral Lake. It is also sometimes called Green Jade Lake for its smooth surface similar to the fine jade, and its gorgeous color hues from the reflection of sunlight.

Religious Significance of Yamdrok Lake

Yamdrok Lake is one of the four largest sacred lakes of Tibet along with Lake Lhamo Latso, Lake Manasarovar, and Lake Namtso. According to Tibetans, the lake is considered as the life line of the inhabitants. It is said if the lake dries up, Tibet would become an inhabitable place. The lake is considered to be guarded by the goddess Dorje Gegkyi Tso. Tibetans perform pilgrimage to Yamdrok Lake and circumambulate around the lake in seven days to wash away their sins and earn merit. The lake’s spiritual energies are associated with the Second Buddha, Padmasambhava, who brought Buddhism to Tibet. Moreover, Buddhists believe Lake Yamdrok helps them find the reincarnated soul of the Dalai Lama. There is also the famous Samding Monastery headed by a female reincarnation on a peninsula near the lake.

Yamdrok Lake with snow capped mountains in the backround

Natural Habitat in and around Yamdrok Lake

The crystal clear, freshwaters of the Yamdrok Lake and its surroundings are home to fish, migratory birds and flocks of sheep. Yamdrok Yumtso Lake has shoals of freshwater fish named Gymnocypris przewalskii, which swim to the shallow water to lay eggs every summer. The lake is the largest habitat for migratory birds in southern Tibet as well. During the season, the lake bank and its islands are dotted with numerous birds and their offspring. There are no wild animals in the region but local Tibetans can be seen grazing herds of goats, sheep and yaks on the rich summer pastures.

June 21, 2016
Manigangou

Located in Ganzi Prefecture in Sichuan Province in southwest China, Manigangou (མ་ཎི་གད་མགོ།)is a small yet active town at an elevation of 3,950 meters. It is a town exhibiting typical nomad culture with Tibetan herdsmen riding on horses, Khampas on flashy motorcycles passing by and people enjoying drinks in wooden Tibetan houses. Manigangou is a single-street cowboy town at the edge of the grasslands near Chola Mountain, which has a lot to offer within and around its surroundings.
Strategic Location of Manigangou

This small nomad town lies at the intersection of three main roads: Kandze at 85 kilometers to the southeast, Derge at 110 kilometers to southwest, Yushu and Serxu 429 kilometers to the northwest. Truckers coming from and to Tibet make a stop at Manigangou to take a sip of Yak buttered tea and unwind before moving ahead on their journey. In the past, Manigangou was regarded as an important transfer and hiatus station on the Tea Horse Road where caravan fleets would stop.

Locals gather to trade yaks in Manigangou.

Yilhun Lhatso Lake

Yilhun Lhatso, also known as Xinluhai or Yulong Lake, is a gorgeous lake at an altitude of around 4,200 meters, just 11 kilometers west of Manigangou town. This sacred and beautiful glacial lake is nestled amidst the rocky, snowy Chola Mountains of Trola range. Offering beautiful sceneries, Yilhun Lhatso Lake is a protected nature reserve. On the shores of this lake one can find dozens of religious, carved prayer stones, as this is a holy lake. The stunning alpine lake is said to provide meditation opportunities for those who wish to achieve enlightenment. Several monks come from the nearby monasteries to meditate. The grasslands around Yilhun Lhatso Lake are perfect for hiking, camping and horse riding.

Dzogchen Gompa Monastery

About 30 kilometers from Manigangou is the Dzogchen Gompa Monastery. Dzogchen Monastery is among the largest Monasteries of Nyingmapa School in Kham region, and is an active center of spiritual study and practice and a major pilgrimage site. Dzogchen Gompa was built in the late 16^th century by First Dzogchen, Pema Rigdzen on the order of the Fifth Dalai Lama. Dzogchen Monastery has been home to many great masters including Khenpo Pema Vajra, Khenpo Shenga, Patrul Rinpoche and Jamgon Ju Mipham Gyatso. The monastery was destroyed by fire in 1936 and was later rebuilt but destroyed again by the Chinese in 1959. As per the directions of the 14th Dalai Lama, the Dzogchen Monastery was re-established in South India in the late 1950s. Since the early 1980s, the original monastery has been undergoing reconstruction.

May 25, 2016