Namtso Lake


Namtso Lake is a mountain lake at the border between Damxung County of Lhasa Prefecture and
Baingoin County of Nagqu Prefecture in the Tibet, approximately 260 kilometers northwest of Lhasa.

The lake lies at an elevation of 4,718 m, and has a surface area of 1,870 square kilometers. It is the
highest salt lake in the world, and largest salt lake in the Tibet.

Namtso has five uninhabited islands of reasonable size, in addition to one or two rocky outcrops. The
islands have been used for spiritual retreat by pilgrims who walk over the lake's frozen surface at the
end of winter, carrying their food with them. They spend the summer there, unable to return to shore
again until the water freezes the following winter. This practice is no longer permitted under the
Communist Chinese regime in Tibet.

Summer is the best time for Namtso Lake. Wild yaks, hares and other wild animals leisurely look for food along the expansive lake shores;
countless migratory birds fly here to lay eggs and feed their young; sometimes lovely fishes in the lake jump out of the lake water, enjoying the
warmth of the sunshine; sheep and cows herds are like flowing white blanks on the green grassland which can stretch as far as your eyes can
see; the dulcet songs of Gauchos resound through the valleys. This time of the year Namtso Lake is full of life and activity.
Therefore it is no wonder Tibetans take Namtso Lake the symbol of goodliness and happiness. Really Namtso Lake is a
blessing from nature.

Namtso Lake in the Tibet Autonomous Region was selected as one of the five most beautiful lakes in China by Chinese
National Geography magazine. Namtso Lake's touching beauty should not be missed by any traveler who visits Tibet. Its
purity and solemnness are symbols of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

Besides the beautiful scenery in Namtso, it is also a famous sacred Buddhist place. There is a Zhaxi Temple in Zhaxi
byland. In every Tibetan year of sheep, thousands of Buddhism adherents will come here to worship. As a rule, they will
walk clockwise along the Namtso Lake in order to receive the blessing of the gods.