Bagakain Lake
Bagakain Lake or Baga Lake is a lake located in Ruma upazila under the hill district Bandarban, Bangladesh. It is a natural sweet and deep water lake. Its height from sea level is nearly 2,000 feet (610 m). Geologists believe that it was created by collection of rain water in the crater of a dead volcano almost 2000 years ago. The lake is rectangular in shape.
A local legend tells that the lake was created after the inhabitants of a Khumi village killed and ate a deity who later reappeared to them in the form of a dragon. Instantly an earthquake occurred, the hillside caved in, and the village disappeared and formed a deep lake.The water color of the lake varies at different times at a day depending upon the sun light, humidity and clouds.
Description
The lake is bounded on three sides by mountain peaks covered with thick bamboo bushes. The area of the lake is 18.56 acres (75,100 m2). It is a closed lake and there is a small spring named Boga chhara, which is 153 metres (502 ft) deep. There is no outlet for draining out water from the lake. The lake is composed of the soft rocks of the Bhuban Formation. The main source of water is the spring. The water is crystal clear and under the lake the water there are rocks and boulders all over.
Limnology of Lake Bagakain
Bogakain, a natural high altitude (372 m) lake of Bangladesh has been limnologically investigated for the first time. At midpoint, the depth of the lake was measured 46.54 m and the Secchi visibility was 2.37 m. Water temperature from 1–10 m depth gradient showed slight stratification in the lake which varied from 27.0 - 22.4°C at 1.00 pm. pH at the different depths ranged from 7.8 - 9.1, conductivity from 75 - 80 μS/cm and TDS from 39 – 42 mg/l. Alkalinity ranged from 0.8 - 1.24 meq/l and DO from 0.61 - 11.39 mg/l. A total of 40 species of phytoplank-ton were recorded from the lake of which 21 belonged to Chlorophyceae followed by Cynaophyceae (5), Bacillariophyceae (4), Cryptophyceae (4), Euglenophyceae (3), Dinophyceae (2) and Chrysophyceae (1). Bloom by Synnechocystis salina Wisl was observed at 10 m depth. Water temperature correlated negatively and significantly with depth. Phytoplankton biomass as chl a correlated positively with phytoplankton density and water depth. The former variable showed negative correlation with pH and water temperature. Lake Bogakain is the deepest natural lake of Bangladesh and many of the previous concepts regarding the lake i.e., fishless, highly turbid water and it has got a thermal spring at the bottom was found invalid. http://www.banglajol.info/index.php/BJB/article/view/7301
Tourism
There are small tribal communities like the Bawm, Tripura and Khumi located around the lake. In the rainy season, it is quite difficult to stroll beside the lake. The road from Ruma to Boga Lake is still under construction.The lake attracts tourists because of its scenic beauty but it is inaccessible by any means of transport. Only those who take the trouble of walking through the hilly bushes sometimes visit the lake. Due to the acidity of the lake, there is no immediate vegetation on its banks and no fish in its waters either.
But visitors do not hike to Boga Lake for fishing, they come to the lake to marvel at its size, its magnificent views and to be able to enjoy a wonderful quiet moment of rest surrounded by natural beauty and wonder.
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