The Satsar Lake or Sat Sar (lit: “''the seven lakes''”) consists of seven small

alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...

lakes situated in Ganderbal district of the

Kashmir Valley The Kashmir Valley, also known as the ''Vale of Kashmir'', is an intermontane valley concentrated in the Kashmir Division of the Indian- union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The valley is bounded on the southwest by the Pir Panjal Range and ...

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...

, India.

Geography

The lakes are situated in a narrow alpine valley stretching from north to south and spread over distance with a width of . It also serves a natural mountain pass between Tulail Valley and

Sind Valley The Sind Valley is a Himalayan sub-valley of the Kashmir Valley in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The entrance of the Sind Valley lies northeast of Srinagar the capital of Jammu and Kashmir. It is a long gorge valley wi ...

. The lakes of

Gangabal The Gangabal Lake, also called Haramukh Ganga, is a lake situated at the foot of Mount Haramukh in Ganderbal district, north of Srinagar, in Indian-administered Kashmir. It is an alpine high altitude oligotrophic lake, home to many species of f ...

and

Nundkol The Nundkol Lake or Nund Kol also known as Nandi Kund and Kalodaka Lake is an oligotrophic alpine lake situated in Ganderbal district of the Kashmir Valley in Jammu and Kashmir, India. This lake is considered sacred by Hindus. Etymology The ...

lie on the opposite side of Zajibal pass (). The Satsar Lakes are surrounded by lush green meadows which are home to shepherds during summer and serve as a camping site for tourists. Naranag is the nearest settlement and serves as the base camp for trekking to the lake in the summer. The Satsar Lake is mainly fed by melting snow. During the late summer and autumn, two or three lakes usually dry up, depending upon the precipitation. These lakes give rise to a stream which disappears and flows underground, from the sideby glacier a stream originates and flows down southwards and falls into Wangath Nallah through Churnar which is the major right tributary of the

Sind River The Sind River or the Sindh River is a river in the Ganderbal district of the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is a major tributary of the Jhelum River and is 108 kilometres long. Geography The Sind River forms the Sind V ...

Flora and fauna

During the winter, the Satsar Lakes are covered by heavy snow. The basin of the lake is surrounded by a sheet of alpine flowers in the summer; the geum,

blue poppy ''Meconopsis'' is a genus of flowering plants in the poppy family Papaveraceae. It was created by French botanist Viguier in 1814 for the species known by the common name Welsh poppy, which Carl Linnaeus had described as ''Papaver cambricum''. ...

potentilla ''Potentilla'' is a genus containing over 300Guillén, A., et al. (2005)Reproductive biology of the Iberian species of ''Potentilla'' L. (Rosaceae).''Anales del Jardín Botánico de Madrid'' 1(62) 9–21. species of annual, biennial and perenni ...

and gentian are relatively common. Hedysarum flowers are found in late spring throughout the area around the lake. All seven lakes are stocked with trout, mainly

brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morph ...

. Licensed anglers are permitted to fish in the lakes, although permission has to be obtained from

Srinagar Srinagar (English: , ) is the largest city and the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It lies in the Kashmir Valley on the banks of the Jhelum River, a tributary of the Indus, and Dal and Anchar lakes. The city is known for its natu ...

in advance.

Access

The Satsar Lakes are accessible only during the summer; during the winter, the treks are closed because of the heavy snowfall. Satsar can be reached from

, via a 65 km motorable road which leads through Ganderbal and Wayil to the Naranag trekking camp. The alpine meadows of Trunakhul and Badpathri and the lakes of Nundkol and Gangabal lie along the route. An alternate trek starts from Chattergul village, 10 km to the west of Naranag, which leads through the meadows of Mahlish. The lake can also be accessed through Bandipora and the six-day trekking starting point is Arin. It can also be accessed through Gurais via

Tulail The Tulail Valley is a Himalayan sub-valley of Gurez in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir in India. The Valley lies northeast of Bandipora and from Srinagar the capital of Jammu and Kashmir. Tulail Valley lies immediate east of the ...

. Tourists prefer to take the Naranag trek and return via Gadsar Lake, Vishansar Lake and Sonamarg or vice versa to cover most alpine lakes of the area.

References

{{Kashmir Valley Lakes of Jammu and Kashmir Geography of Ganderbal district