Lugu Lake (simplified Chinese: 泸沽湖; traditional Chinese: 瀘沽湖; pinyin: lú gū hú; literally “Lugu Lake”) is located in the north Yongning Villiage of Ninglang Country. It has 73km from the Ninglang Country and 280km from the Lijiang Country. Lugu Lake is the boundary of Sichuan Province and Yunnan Province.
The lake is the property of both Yunnan and Sichuan Province. Sichuan Province has 2/3 of the total area of the lake while Yunnan has 1/3 of the total area.
Lugu Lake covers an area of more than 50 square kilometers and 2690 meters high. The average depth is 45 meters and the most depth place is 93 meters. The most transparency is 11 meters and the most visibility is 12 meters. The clear lake is the highest lake in Yunnan and is also the deepest freshwater lake. There are five islands, three Peninsulas and one seawall islands. The islands are in various shapes and the color is green. 
Lugu Lake is surrounded by high mountains and there are more than three months in a year of snow cover period. The mountains have rich resources and fresh air, also have beautiful scenery. The Lugu Lake is treated as “Mother Lake” by the local people. The shape of the lake is beautiful and the surrounding mountains look like fairies. The lakeshore is winding stretch gracefully. Numerous pieces of alluvial fans provide natural places for visitors play and have rest. There is a valley behind the mountain of Hudongnan Sanjia Country, the clear water flow along the valley and there is “Buddha Cave” hide in the valley. This is a place you can enjoy the beautiful scenery and have a good rest. The Lugu Lake has rich culture custom and beautiful scenery. There are lovely Mosuo girls, canoes and freshman’s songs, people call them “three beautiful views.” You will see the pretty Mosuo girls in every villages of the Lugu Lake.
Lugu Lake Attractions
Lugu Lake Stories:
1. Lugu Lake legend
There is an interesting legend about the formation of the Lugu Lake. Long long ago, the lake was a village. An orphan was in the village and he grazed everyday in the Lion Mountain. Sheep and cattle were always very strong if people asked him to graze. One day, he felt a sleep under a tree. He dreamed a big fish and said to him:”Good boy, you are so poor. You needn’t bring lunch from then on and you can eat me.” When the little boy waked up, he began to find the fish in the mountain. Finally he found it in a cave. Then he cut a piece of meat and grilled I and ate. The next day, he went there again. He found there are a big fish again. A greedy man knew the story, he also wanted the fish. So some other greed people and him tided up the big fish and pulled it out of the cave. Unfortunately, the disaster came. The flood spewed out the cave and submerged the village. At that time, a Mosuo woman was feeding her pig while two children were playing. The woman saw the flood and showed her resourcefulness in the emergency. She took her children into the pigsty at once, but she was died. The village became a lake. The two children flowed in the flood. Then they became the ancestors of the place. People use wood to make “pigsty boat” to honor of the great mother, the lake so called “Mother Lake.”
2. Walking Marriage
The walking marriage is popular in the Mosuo people at the Lugu Lake bank. Up to now, 90％ people are still carry out the walking marriage system. Only less than 10％ people live together. Mosuo people treated women as the “root” of the family. If a family has no girl, the boy will marry with a woman while other boys in his family will continue walking marriage.
Walking marriage also called “A qiao Marriage.” It means a relationship not constrain by laws. The woman and man in this marriage are still belongs to their own family. The man just lives in the woman’ home and back to his own family in the next morning. But the walking marriage has rules. People can’t establish the relationship with relatives and also they can only establish the relationship with one people.
The woman and the man weather can establish the “A Xiao Marriage” or not up to the girl. Wealth and status may not able to get the girl’s heart. Base on the emotion, girls pay more attention to the handsome and wise man. Once the man and the woman like each other, nothing can stop them to get married. People can decide their marriage when work together, celebrate holidays together and dance together.
Related posts:
