Ba Bể Lake ( vi, Hồ Ba Bể; Ba means Three, Bể is from the Tay language word ''pé'', meaning "lake") is the largest natural lake in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...

. It is located in Nam Mẫu commune, Ba Bể district, Bắc Kạn Province in the

Northeast The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sep ...

region of the country. Having been formed approximately 200 million years ago, the lake is surrounded by limestone cliffs, which in turn are covered by

primary forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological feature ...

s. The lake comprises three zones named Pé Lầm, Pé Lù, and Pé Lèng. Three

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of ...

s, named Năng, Tả Han, and Nam Cường, are the main inflows of the lake. The Năng river enters the lake through a large

waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several ...

called Đầu Đẳng. In the lake there are also three islands, named Án Mã, Khẩu Cúm, and Po Gia Mải (literally "Widow's Island"). Ba Bể Lake is a featured geographical science and is a

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic ('' genetic variability''), species ('' species diversity''), and ecosystem ('' ecosystem diversity'') ...

reservoir. It is a part of the

Ba Bể National Park Ba Bể National Park ( vi, Vườn Quốc Gia Ba Bể) is a reserve in Bắc Kạn Province, Northeast region of Vietnam, set up to protect a very murky lake (Ba Bể Lake) along with surrounding limestone and highland nevergreen forests. It ...

. It is home to a range of animals and plants.

The legend of Ba Be lake

Once upon a time, there was a poor old woman. Villagers distrusted her because she seemed dirty and ugly-looking. Fortunately, she was eventually helped by a good-hearted mother and her son. The truth was that the old lady was a fairy. She told the mother and son that the village and surrounding area were about to be struck by a natural disaster. Despite her warnings, no one believed her, except for the mother and son, who began to build a boat. The next night, a terrible rainstorm began to engulf the village. The mother and son, who had prepared their boat beforehand, survived and saved many people from drowning. The village was subsequently submerged in water and gradually formed into the current Ba Bể Lake.Su tich ho Ba Be
/ref> BacKan-HoBaBe map

References

External links

Ba Be Lake in UNESCO website
Lakes of Vietnam Landforms of Bắc Kạn province Ramsar sites in Vietnam {{Vietnam-geo-stub