Siling Tso Lake in Xainza County, Nagqu
Chinese Name: 色林错湖
English Name: Siling Tso Lake
Location: Located in Xainza County(申扎县), Nagqu Prefecture(那曲市) , Tibet Autonomous Region, China
Admission Fee: Free
Opening Hours: All day
About Siling Tso Lake
Siling Lake is a lake in the Tibet Autonomous Region, to the north of Xainza. Doijiang is located near the lake. Administratively it belongs to Xainza County and Baingoin County (班戈县) of the Nagqu Prefecture.
History and Development of Siling Tso Lake
The lake lies at an altitude of 4530 meters. It is a salt lake. It is fed by the rivers Za’gya Zangbo (or Tsagya Tsangpo) (扎加藏布) and the Boques Tsangpo (波曲藏布). With an area of 1865 square kilometers, Siling Co is the second largest saltwater lake in the northern Tibetan Plateau and forms part of the Siling Co National Nature Reserve (also Selincuo Reserve or Xainza Nature Reserve). The 400,000 hectare reserve was established in 1993 and contains significant populations of black-necked cranes and some 120 species of birds in total. The temperature at the lake is an annual average of -3 to -0.6 °C, the maximum annual temperature 9.4 °C. The average rainfall is 290 millimeters per year, 90 percent of which falls in the months of June to September, often in the summer as hail.
Main Attractions- Siling Tso Lake
The lake itself, however, only has a single species, Gymnocypris selincuoensis, exploited by fishermen. The prairie on the banks of the lake is traditionally used as grazing land for yaks and sheep.
Attraction Transportation
The transportation in Xainza is convenient. You can take the train from Lhasa to Shigatse City. From here, you can take the bus tour of Xainza County.
Attraction Travel Tips
1. Traveling Hours: 1~2 hours
2. Traveling Seasons: All year
3. High Altitude Sickness Avoiding: Bring enough water and some thick clothes, eating more fruits and vegetables rich in vitamins and so on.
4. Pay attention to respect the local customers.
