Tilicho Lake (; ) is a glacial lake located in the
Manang
Manang () is a town in the Manang District of Nepal. It is located at 28°40'0N 84°1'0E with an elevation of . According to the preliminary results of the 2011 Nepal census, the district has a population of 6,527 people living in 1,495 individua ...
district of
Nepal
Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
,
as the crow flies from the city of
Pokhara
Pokhara ( ) is a metropolis, metropolitan city located in central Nepal, which serves as the capital of Gandaki Province. Named the country's "capital of tourism" it is the List of cities in Nepal, second largest city after Kathmandu, with 599,5 ...
. It is situated at an altitude of in the
Annapurna range of the
Himalayas
The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...
. Another source lists the altitude of Lake Tilicho as being above
mean sea level
A mean is a quantity representing the "center" of a collection of numbers and is intermediate to the extreme values of the set of numbers. There are several kinds of means (or "measures of central tendency") in mathematics, especially in statist ...
.
According to the Nepali Department of Hydrology & Meteorology (2003), no aquatic organism has been recorded in the lake.
Tilicho Lake was once known as Nepal’s highest lake, as it is situated at an altitude of 4,919 meters (16,138 ft), but now is overthrown by the
Kajin Sara Lake which is situated at 5,200 m, however, Tilicho Lake is still the Lake with longest diameter, lengthening up to 4 km in length and 1.2 km in width. Another interesting fact about Tilicho Lake is that there are neither water sources present, nor is there a designated route for water to follow, so the water stays within the lake.
Tilicho Lake is the destination of one of the most popular side hikes of the
Annapurna Circuit trek. The hike takes additional 3–4 days. No camping is required, as new lodges have been built between Manang and the lake. The final approach to the lake is done in a day hike from the lodge at Tilicho Base Camp.
Trekkers attempting the Annapurna Circuit route usually cross the watershed between Manang and Kali Gandaki valleys over the 5416 meters high
Thorong La pass. The alternate route, skirting Tilicho Lake from the north, has been gaining popularity. This route is more demanding and requires at least one night of camping. There are no teahouses or lodges past the Tilicho Base Camp lodge some kilometers east of the lake and the next village of Thini Gaon in the Kali Gandaki valley. Most groups spend two nights between these places. There are two passes leading to Thini Gaon and Jomsom; Mesokanto La and Tilicho North pass known also as Tilicho "Tourist pass". These routes via Tilicho Lake are more often closed by snow than the higher Thorong La.
Tilicho Lake was the site of one of the highest ever
altitude scuba dives. A Russian diving team, consisting of Andrei Andryushin, Denis Bakin, and Maxim Gresko, conducted a scuba dive in the lake in 2000.
Religious significance
Hindus believe that Tilicho Lake is the ancient Kak Bhusundi Lake mentioned in the epic Ramayana.
The sage Kak Bhusundi is believed to have first told the happenings of Ramayana to Garuda - king of birds, near this lake. The sage took the form of a crow while telling the story to Garuda. Crow translates to Kak in Sanskrit, hence the name Kak Bhusndi for the sage.
Surrounding mountains
The mountains surrounding the lake are Khangsar, Muktinath peak, Nilgiri, and Tilicho.
See also
*
Gurudongmar Lake
*
Lake Tsongmo
*
Licancabur
References
External links
* Photo.
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Tilicho Lake Trek Adventure Vision Treks
{{Authority control
Lakes of Gandaki Province
Lakes of Nepal