The Vishansar Lake is an alpine high-elevation oligotrophic lake, situated near

Sonamarg Sonamarg () or Sonmarg (), known as Sonamarag (; ) in Kashmiri, is a hill station located in the Ganderbal District The Ganderbal district, or more formally District Ganderdal, is a district in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, I ...

in the Ganderbal district of

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, at an elevation of . It has a maximum length of 1 km, and maximum width of 0.6 km.

Etymology and geography

Vishansar, in

Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to: * People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir * Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley * Kashmiri language, their language People with the name * Kashmiri Saikia Baruah ...

, means ''the lake of Vishnu.'' This lake holds great importance for

Kashmiri Pandits The Kashmiri Pandits (also known as Kashmiri Brahmins) are a group of Kashmiri Hindus and a part of the larger Saraswat Brahmin community of India. They belong to the Pancha-Gauda, Pancha Gauda Brahmin group from the Kashmir Valley, a mountai ...

. It is home to many types of fish, among which is the

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 ...

. It freezes during winter. During the summer season, the lake is surrounded by green lush meadows, where local shepherds graze their flocks of sheep and goats. The lake, with its scenic beauty, snow-covered mountains, gorges filled with small glaciers, and meadows with alpine flowers, is an attraction for the trekkers in 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 ...

. It is fed by the

Krishansar Lake The Krishansar Lake is an alpine high elevation oligotrophic lake situated near Sonamarg, in the Ganderbal district of Jammu and Kashmir in India at an elevation of . It is located less than one kilometer northwest of Vishansar Lake, and has a ...

and

glaciers A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...

. The Vishansar Lake is the source of

Kishanganga River The Neelum River, or Kishanganga River, is a river in the Kashmir region of India and Pakistan. It originates in Bandipora district of northern Jammu and Kashmir in India, flows through the Neelam District of Pakistan's Azad Kashmir and then mer ...

, which flows northwards up to Badoab, and then westwards through Gurais, along the

Line of Control The Line of Control (LoC) is a military control line between the Indian and Pakistanicontrolled parts of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir—a line which does not constitute a legally recognized international boundary, but serve ...

. The Gadsar Lake lies some 9 km to the west, crossing Gadsar Pass.

Gallery

File:Vishansar10.jpg, File:Vishansar11.jpg, File:Vishansar lake2.jpg, File:Vishansar13.jpg, File:Vishansar14.jpg,

References

{{Hydrography of Jammu and Kashmir Lakes of Jammu and Kashmir Geography of Ganderbal district Tourist attractions in Ganderbal district