Namco is the highest saltwater lake in the world. Its lake is clear and transparent, and the lake is sky blue. Water and the sky are the same color, and they are integrated. Walking by the lake is like being in a fairyland. Namco is a large-scale structural fault lake formed in the Himalayan orogenic depression in Tertiary. Later, due to the gradual drying of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the area of Namco was greatly reduced.
Today, Namco Lake has three islands, many of which have an area of 1.2 square kilometers. In addition, there are five peninsulas in the lake that extend into the water from different directions, of which Tashi Peninsula is a peninsula of about 10 square kilometers composed of limestone.
Due to the erosion of lakes, there are many quiet caves, forming a unique karst landform. Some caves collapse to form natural skylights, while others are covered with stalactites of different shapes, which is a wonder. Although Namco is 47 18 meters above sea level, dense pastures and cypress forests grow everywhere on the island and on the lake beach.
Namco is located in the semi-humid to semi-arid grassland zone, and the lakeside plain is below 4800 meters above sea level; Above 4800 meters is the lakeside plain; There are alpine meadows on both sides of lakeside wetlands and rivers; There are aquatic vegetation in the shallow waters near rivers and lakes. Every early summer, flocks of wild ducks fly to live and breed.
There are often bears, wild yaks, wild donkeys, rock sheep, foxes, roe deer, marmots and other wild animals in the lake. The lake is rich in plateau leptospirosis and scaleless fish. The lake area also produces valuable medicinal materials such as Cordyceps, Fritillaria and Saussurea involucrata. Birds in the lake area include the spotted goose, the red-spotted duck and the merganser.
It is said that Namco is the patron saint of sheep, so every Tibetan Year of the Sheep, Namco will open the holy door to welcome the gods to gather. It is said that the gods in the world gather in turn according to different years. In the Tibetan calendar, the Year of the Horse gathers in Gangdise, the Year of the Monkey gathers in Zhari Mountain in the south, and the Year of the Sheep gathers in Namco.
Therefore, from 1 month to1February in the Tibetan Year of the Sheep, people who turned to the lake rushed to make a pilgrimage to Namco. People who come to Namco, regardless of gender and age, regard pilgrimage as a great virtue and believe that it can also bring infinite blessings to themselves. This belief drives believers to travel long distances and walk around the lake day and night.
Even the old man who can't walk rides a horse, thinking that the faster he turns, the higher his merits will be. As a result, those strong boys run hard day and night, and they can transfer to Namco for a week in 10 days.
In many lakes in northern Tibet, why do people trust Namco so much? This may be not only because there are four ancient temples around Namco, but also because Namco's unique landscape, various strange stones and wonderful legends have painted Namco with mysterious colors.