Karakol (lake)
Karakol lake | ||
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Karakol lake | ||
Geographical location | Xinjiang ( PR China ) | |
Drain | → Signed | |
Location close to the shore | Kashgar | |
Data | ||
Coordinates | 38 ° 26 '0 " N , 75 ° 3' 0" E | |
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Altitude above sea level | 3600 m | |
surface | 4.8 km² |
The Karakol Lake ( Chinese 喀拉库勒 湖 , Pinyin Kālākùlè Hú ; Kyrgyz : "Black Lake") is a lake in the far west of China .
geography
It is located in Xinjiang , about 200 km south of Kashgar in the Kyrgyz Autonomous District of Kizilsu on the Karakoram Highway . With a height of 3600 m , the lake is the highest on the Pamir plateau .
Muztagata ( 7509 m ), Kongur Shan ( 7649 m ) and Kongur Jiubie ( 7530 m ) are among the highest year-round snow-capped mountains surrounding the lake .
tourism
The lake is a popular destination for adventure travelers and is famous for its surreal scenery, which is reflected with great clarity in the lake water, which takes on various colors from dark green to azure and light blue. There are two Kyrgyz settlements on Lake Karakol: a cluster of nomad tents about 1 km east of the bus drop-off point, and a village with stone houses near the west bank.
Karakol Lake is one of the most impressive natural destinations in western China - a fact that has not gone unnoticed by Chinese tourism . So far, a resort has been established where tourists can eat in a restaurant, ride camels, or spend the night in rooms or tents. This development has so far been limited to the hours around noon; in the evening and in the morning the traveler has the lake all to himself, together with the Kyrgyz locals. With the beginnings of the resort and the current expansion of the highway, however, it is to be expected that this remote part of China will soon be more closely connected to the motherland and its booming tourism.