Lake Cote ( es, Lago Cote), originally known as Lake Cóter, is a

fresh water Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does include ...

crater lake located in the northern highlands of

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

. It is currently the largest natural lake in Costa Rica at . Its depth varies between 6 and 18 meters.

Location

Located in Cote district, Guatuso canton, of Alajuela province, between the Arenal Volcano and

Tenorio Volcano Tenorio Volcano ( es, Volcán Tenorio) is an inactive andesitic stratovolcano in north-western Costa Rica. It is the main geographical feature of the eponymous Tenorio Volcano National Park. Toponymy The name comes from the Chorotega legen ...

. Nearby is located the largest lake in Costa Rica, Lake Arenal, of artificial origin.

Physical aspects

It is a crater lake of

Maar A maar is a broad, low-relief volcanic crater caused by a phreatomagmatic eruption (an explosion which occurs when groundwater comes into contact with hot lava or magma). A maar characteristically fills with water to form a relatively shallow ...

type with a heart-like ovoid shape and a 1 km diameter. Average depth is of 6.30m and maximum depth is 18m at the center area. It is the natural drainage of River Cote. Average water temperature is around 21.9 °C and 27.9 °C.

Uses

The lake is used for tourism, subsistence fishing, hydropower electricity generation and as a conservation area. It is regarded as a sacred place by the local Maleku people.

Cote UFO

On 4 September 1971, during an aerial survey by the National Geographic Institute of Costa Rica, what looks like a UFO was photographed over Lake Cote (see photo).

References

{{Reflist Geography of Alajuela Province Geography of Guanacaste Province Tourist attractions in Alajuela Province Tourist attractions in Guanacaste Province Cote