Thelakes of Bhutan comprise itsglacial lakes and its natural mountain lakes.Bhutanese territory contains some 2,674 high altitude glacial lakes and subsidiary lakes, out of which 25 pose a risk ofGLOFs.[1][2] There are also more than 59 natural non-glacial lakes in Bhutan, covering about 4,250 hectares (16.4 sq mi). Most are located above an altitude of 3,500 metres (11,500 ft), and most have no permanent human settlements nearby, though many are used for grazing yaks and may have scattered temporary settlements.[3][4]
Only four lakes are below an altitude of 2,000 metres (6,600 ft): the temperateKabji-Hoka Tsho in Punakha District at 1,829 metres (6,001 ft); Luchika inWangdue Phodrang at 1,830 metres (6,000 ft);Buli Tsho inZhemgang at 1,372 metres (4,501 ft); and the subtropical Gulandi inSamdrup Jongkhar at 366 metres (1,201 ft).[3][4][5]
As phenomena of nature, all lakes in Bhutan are believed to be inhabited by spirits.[6]: 27 A handful of lakes in Bhutan are particularly sacred, most often connected to lives ofBuddhist saintsGuru Rimpoche andPema Lingpa. For example,Membar Tsho ("Burning Lake"), in theTang Valley nearBumthang, is heavily associated withGuru Rimpoche, who brought Buddhism to Bhutan and discovered his firstterma in the lake in 1475.[7]: 21, 29, 177
Most natural lake names are denoted with the wordtsho, meaning "lake" (Dzongkha: མཚོ་;Wylie:mtsho).[8] They may be identified as an individuals, pairs, or groups of lakes.
Bhutan contains some 2,674glacial lakes.[1][2] Some glacial lakes, such as Thorthormi Lake inLunana Gewog, are not a single bodies of water but collections supraglacial ponds.[9] Most glacial lakes identified as potentially dangerous feed into theManas River andPuna Tsang (Sankosh) River water systems of north-central Bhutan.[10] During a GLOF, residents of nearby downstream villages may have as little as twenty minutes to evacuate; floodwaters from one 1994 GLOF at Luggye lake took about seven hours to reach Punakha, some 90 kilometres (56 mi) downstream.[11]
Where glacial movement temporary blocks riverflows, downstream areas may be threatened byglacial lake outburst flood ("GLOFs").[12][13] Although GLOFs are not a new phenomenon in Bhutan, their frequency has risen in the past three decades.[1][14] Significant GLOFs occurred in 1957, 1960, 1968 and 1994, devastating lives and property downstream.[15] According to the Bhutan Department of Energy however, the majority of rivers in Bhutan are more susceptible to fluctuation with changing rainfall patterns than to flooding directly attributable to glacier or snow melt.[16]
For public safety, these glaciers and glacial lakes are maintained by the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Department of Geology and Mines, an executive (cabinet) agency of thegovernment of Bhutan.[17] The Department, as part of its environmental "mitigation projects," aims to lower the levels of glacial lakes and thereby avert GLOF-related disaster. One such glacial lake mitigation project, for example, aimed to lower water levels by five meters over three years. The Department usessilent explosives and other means it considers environmentally friendly in order to minimize the ecological impact of its mitigation projects. These projects, however, remain difficult to conduct because of the weather, terrain, and relative lack of oxygen at the glacial lakes' altitudes. As of September 2010, GLOF early warning systems were slated for installation by mid-2011 inPunakha andWangdue Phodrang Districts at a cost ofUSD4.2 million.[2][18]
Naturally occurring mountain lakes, though today fewer thanglacial lakes, include several historically and spiritually relevant bodies of water.
| Lake name | District | Gewog | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Animo Tsho | Bumthang District | Chhoekhor Gewog | Located near Dhur, Animo Tsho sits at an elevation of 4,375 metres (14,354 ft) on the road from Bumthang to Lunana. It is a holy lake where speech is forbidden.[6]: 239 |
| Buli Tsho | Zhemgang District | The Buli sits at 1,372 metres (4,501 ft).[3][4][5] | |
| Chhiba Tsho | Dagana District | Chhiba Tsho is located below a pass at 4,500 metres (14,800 ft). On the other side of the pass lie Dagana Valley and the small, blue Langtsho ("Ox Lake").[6]: 205 | |
| Chungge Tsho | Bumthang District | Chhoekhor Gewog | Chungge Tsho is at an elevation of 4,400 metres (14,400 ft), near Lungsipang village.[6]: 256 |
| Dagebho | Thimphu District | Soe Gewog | east Jomo lake group; its name means "longer than thearchery range," and is also called Batsho.[6]: 200 |
| Daja Tsho | Thimphu District | Soe Gewog | Jomo lake group; Daja Tsho is also called Serbho Tsho ("Golden Lake").[6]: 200, 202 It lies along the Snowman Trek at 4,520 metres (14,830 ft)[7]: 215 |
| Dangling Tsho | Trashigang District | Khaling Gewog | Located to the north of Khaling village, the lake is considered very sacred by the local people.[19] |
| Djule Tsho | Bumthang District | Chhoekhor Gewog | Djule Tsho is located to the northwest of the sacred Animo Tsho at 4,190 metres (13,750 ft) near the Gongto La (Gokthong La) and Djule La passes. This pass marks the watershed of the Mangde Chhu (Trongsa Chhu), one of Bhutan's major river systems.[6]: 239 |
| Dongney Tsho | Paro District | Tsento Gewog | Dongney Tsho is surrounded by fir trees, located on the trekking path toDrugyel Dzong.[6]: 66 |
| Dongtsho | Thimphu District | Soe Gewog | east Jomo lake group.[6]: 200 |
| Drakey Pangtsho | Paro District | Tsento Gewog | Drakey Pangtsho is a spiritual lake on the lap of Jowo Drake, where Guru Rinpoche had hidden sacred treasures in the 8th Century. This treasure lake is in the middle of a gently sloped rocky hill at an altitude of 4390 masl in the northern part of Paro Dzongkhag.[20] |
| Dungtsho Tsho | Paro District | Doteng Gewog | Dungtsho Tsho and Dungtsho Sama, male and female lakes, respectively.[6]: 190 |
| Gulandi Tsho | Samdrup Jongkhar District | The subtropical Gulandi sits at 366 metres (1,201 ft).[3][4][5] | |
| Kabji-Hoka Tsho | Punakha District | The Ho Ko Tsho sits at 1,829 metres (6,001 ft).[3][4][5] | |
| Janye Tsho | Thimphu District | Lingzhi Gewog | Janye, or Jane, Tsho rests at 3,956 metres (12,979 ft) along the Druk Path Trail between Jimilang Tsho and Simkotra Tsho. It is often occupied by yak herders.[6]: 190 |
| Jatsho | Thimphu District | Soe Gewog | Jomo lake group; the largest lake of its group, its name ("Vulture Lake"), comes from its shape.[6]: 200 |
| Jimilang Tsho | Thimphu District | Jimilang rests at an elevation of 3,870 metres (12,700 ft) at the apex of the Druk Path Trail. Its name means "Sand Ox Lake," named after a legendary bull.[7]: 214 Also called Bimelang Tsho, thissacred lake is a meditation site. The lake contains many trout, and fishing there is allowed with permit.[6]: 188, 191 | |
| Laname Tsho | Paro District | Tsento Gewog | Laname Tsho is near Laname La and Bonte La passes.[6]: 159 |
| Langtsho | Dagana District | Langtsho ("Ox Lake") is a small lake adjacent to theMangde Chhu watershed.[6]: 205 | |
| Luetshokha Tsho | Wangdue Phodrang District | Luetshokha sits at 1,830 metres (6,000 ft).[3][4][5] The lake is located on the way toSamtengang village. | |
| Membar Tsho | Bumthang District | "Burning Lake", in theTang Valley nearBumthang, is heavily associated withGuru Rimpoche, who brought Buddhism to Bhutan and discovered his firstterma in the lake in 1475.[7]: 21, 29, 177 | |
| Ngyetsho | Thimphu District | Soe Gewog | east Jomo lake group.[6]: 200 |
| Nob Tshona Patta Tsho | Haa District | Uesu Gewog | Nob Tshona Patta Tsho is a treking destination fromHaa toParo near Lukha village.[6]: 67, 70 |
| Om Tsho | Trongsa District | Nubi Gewog | Om Tsho, also called Omtoe Tsho and Omta Tsho, lies at 4,665 metres (15,305 ft). It is a sacred lake, believed to be wherePema Lingpa foundterton: cymbals, texts, and other artifacts hidden by Guru Rimpoche. There is a second smaller lake below the waterfall of Om Tsho at 4,150 metres (13,620 ft); both are located along the Snowman Trek.[6]: 141 |
| Rigona Tsho | Paro District | Tsento Gewog | Rigona is near Nob Tshona Patta Tsho at 4,090 metres (13,420 ft).[6]: 71 |
| Sertsho | Thimphu District | Soe Gewog | east Jomo lake group.[6]: 200 |
| Sethag Burge Tsho | Gasa District | Laya Gewog | Also called Sistiha Phugi Tso, this lake lies below the enormous Tsenda Gang range.[6]: 178 |
| Setsho | Gasa District | Lunana Gewog | Setsho lake is located southwest of Gonju La along the Ramena Trail near Woche[6]: 123 |
| Simdong Goi Tso | Gasa District | Laya Gewog | This lake lies between Wochey and the Wagye La pass, the old route toLhasa.[6]: 178 |
| Simkotra Tsho | Thimphu District | Naro Gewog | Simkotra Tsho is located to the south of Jimilang Tsho along the Druk Path Trail at 4,090 metres (13,420 ft).[6]: 190 |
| Solang Chhu | Bumthang District | Chhoekhor Gewog | Solang Chhu (Thole Tsho) is an alpine lake at 4,420 metres (14,500 ft) near Bopsar and Thole La pass.[6]: 264 |
| Tampoe Tsho | Trongsa District | Nubi Gewog | Tampoe Tsho is a small lake near Om Tsho. |
| Tshochena Lake | Gasa District | Lunana Gewog | Tshochena is located along the Snowman Trek, at 4,970 metres (16,310 ft).[7]: 240 |
| Tsho Phu | Paro District | Tsento Gewog | The Tsho Phu are a pair of lakes along the Snowman Trek at 4,380 metres (14,370 ft).[7]: 221 Although they were stocked with brown trout in the 1960s, fishing there is prohibited.[6]: 149 |
| Utsho Tsho | Thimphu | Soe Gewog | Jomo lake group; Utsho is also called Gewa Tsho ("Turquoise Lake"), and is the lowsest of the Jomo lakes.[6]: 200 |
| Adha Tsho | Wangdue Phodrang | Athang Gewog | Ada Tsho is beautifully located within the warm broadleaved forest near a paddy field. |
Glacial lakes in Bhutan far outnumber other kinds of lakes, and pose a particular risk to those living downstream in the event of aGLOF. Many of these lakes have appeared or grown after climate change, and the frequency at which they emit flood waters has increased. in recent history.
Below is a list of the major glacial lakes in Bhutan. Many lakes appear in clusters, and may someday merge; for example, the numerous glacial lakes ofLaya andLunana Gewogs lie mostly withinJigme Dorji National Park along a handful of major glaciers.
| Lake name | District | Gewog | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thorthormi Glacial Lake | Gasa District | Lunana Gewog | Thorthormi Lake appeared on its glacier sometime after 1967. It is the largest lake in Lunana, with a width of 30 metres (98 ft).[2][21] |
| Raphstreng (Rapstreng) Glacial Lake | Gasa District | Lunana Gewog | This lake appeared on its glacier in 1958. It is just over 2 square kilometres (0.77 sq mi) and 107 metres (351 ft) deep.[9][21][22] |
| Luggye (Lugge) Glacial Lake | Gasa District | Lunana Gewog | Luggye first appeared in 1967 atop its glacier. It has a depth of 142 metres (466 ft), and a width of 30 metres (98 ft). Luggye produced a significant GLOF in 1994.[9][21][22][23] |
| Bechung Glacial Lake | Gasa District | Lunana Gewog | Supra-glacial lake.[9][21] |
| Roduphu Glacial Lake | Gasa District | Laya Gewog | This lake feeds into theMo Chhu (River) basin.[24] |
| Sinchhe Glacial Lake | Gasa District | Laya Gewog | Sinchhe drains into theMo Chhu (River) basin.[24] |
| Gangchentag Glacial Lake | Gasa District | Laya Gewog | Located at the base of Gangchentag Mountain.[25][26] |
| Wochey (Wachey) Glacial Lake | Gasa District | Laya Gewog | Wochey Lake lies at an altitude of 4,220 metres (13,850 ft), just below the Gokthong La pass,[7]: 239 on the single longest glacier in Bhutan at 20.1 kilometres (12.5 mi).[21] |
| Teri Kang Glacial Lake | Gasa District | Laya Gewog | This dam-reinforced lake produced a devastating GLOF in the 1960s, partially destroyingPunakha Dzong.[27] |
| Chubda Glacial Lake | Bumthang District | Located in the upper Chamkhar Chhu basin, this large supraglacial lake was identified as a potential danger in 2001.[28] | |
| Taksha Tsho Glacial Lake | Gasa District | Lunana Gewog | Taksha Tsho is 500 metres (1,600 ft) in diameter and 110 metres (360 ft) deep.[6]: 131 |
| Tsokar Glacial Lake | Bumthang District | Glacial lake in the basin.[24] |
