Heavenly Lake Namtso


Namtso Lake is the biggest lake throughout Tibet. Meanwhile, it is the highest altitude saltwater lake in the world.
It's 4,718 m above the sea level and is the highest lake on earth. And the lake is 70 km from east to west and 30 km from north to south, and comes to an area of 1,940 square kilometers.

Namtso sits to the north of the ever-snow-covered Tanglhar Mountain. To its north and west are large areas of plateau hills. Surrounded by vast grassland, the broad Namtso breeds exuberant waterweeds.

“Namtso” in the Tibetan language means “Heaven Lake”. Historical literature describes that the lake looked as if it had been part of the heaven that had fallen off to the ground, so people called it Namtso, meaning “Heaven Lake”.

Namtso is a holy destination for pilgrims.
There are five islands stand in the waters of Namtso Lake, which are sanctified as the avatars of Buddha’s. Every pilgrim walking around the lake will piously worship them. These islets are famous for their topography, covered by weird but vivid stones.

On the four sides of the lake stand four monasteries, which have Buddhist meanings. By the lake there are also two standing stone pillars, each rising 30 meters and eight meters apart. One has a crack large enough to hold a single person inside. Some Tibetans believe it is the Gate God of the Namtso Lake.

Singing stream converge into the clean sapphire blue lake, which looks like a huge mirror framed and dotted with flowers. The beaches of the lake are a beautiful natural pasture. Producing abundant fish and lodging many birds and beasts, the lake is also a heaven for animals and plants.
Therefore it is no wonder Tibetans take Namtso Lake the symbol of goodliness and happiness.

The best time to visit to Namtso Lake is in the summer or on Tibetan New Year, because thousands of pilgrims will travel a long way to worship here on the Tibetan Yew Year.