Wular Lake– The Shrinking Lake | How is wular lake formed.
- toursandjourneys
- Dec 20, 2019
- 2 min read
Updated: Apr 19, 2020
Discover offbeat trails of Kashmir with our travel expert Reetwika Banerjee
Wular lake is one of the largest freshwater lakes of Asia. Sited in Bandipora, Wular lake is around 65 kilometers northwest from Srinagar. The Wular lake finds significant mentions in Hindu mythology where it is referred as ‘Mahapadmasar’. No temple nearby as such, but this lake is considered a very sacred waterbody by the Kashmiri Pandits. Due to lack of awareness and encroaching shorelines, the Wular lake is shrinking in size every year. Nonetheless, the area is rich in biodiversity even today. Since 1990, Wular Lake is now conserved as a ‘Wetland of International Importance’ under Ramsar Convention.
Wular Lake
There is a very interesting etymological history of this lake. Centuries ago, due to a tectonic fissure on the ground, this lake was formed. As a result, high waves were often seen in the waters due to hidden undercurrent (called ‘Ullol’ in Sanskrit) which eventually went on to become ‘Wular’ in the coming years.
We set sail early morning by seven. Hired a rental car from the taxi stand – a much needed break from Sonu! But boredom seemed a never-ending nightmare for us. We had to undergo hard negotiations just to convince our new driver to take us for Wular lake day trip. “There’s nothing worth going” – was his version all through. Later came to know, he had never been to Wular Lake before; but left no opportunity to bombard his expert comments at us. Huh!
Panoramic view of Wular Lake
Perched at an altitude of 5200 feet above mean sea level, the Wular lake is a natural reservoir of Jhelum and is often silted by its downstream tributaries – Bohnar, Madamati, Ningal and Erin. There is a small island at the middle of the Wular lake which happened to be the romantic getaway of Kashmiri sultan Zain-ul-Abidin. In 1444, he renamed it Zaina Lank in his honour.
The road conditions were pretty good and it took us only two hours from Srinagar. It was a gentle uphill drive from the city center until a point where the milestone read 3 kilometers more to Wular. We had to keep asking at every single bend about the direction. Since this is not a common tourist place, forget our driver, even local people too could not guide much about the lake.
Garden view of Wular Lake
Fishing is the main livelihood of the villagers at Wular Lake. Carps and Barbs are among the most commonly found fishes. It is said, 60% of Kashmir’s fish yield is sourced from here. There is also a birding spot named Nal Sarovar Bird Sanctuary near the lake. Thousands of migratory birds flock there during the winters.
Wular Vantage Park
There was a military check post near Wular Vantage Park. That’s for the first time our identity proofs were verified. Two kilometers up the same hill, there was a beautiful viewpoint, in fact a well maintained garden managed by the Indian army. The bird’s eye view of Wular Lake from its top was simply breathtaking.
At different corners of Vantage Park
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