Lake Tana: geographical position, the origin of the basin, historical and natural monuments

The continent, famous for its deserts and ancient history, can boast of quite large water bodies. Standing on their bank, it is often difficult to imagine that around a thousand square kilometers of waterless land. And most of all the lake Tana is amazing - the water surface, which seems boundless and replete with a wide variety of life.

Geographic location of the lake

It is the largest water reservoir in Ethiopia. In addition, in addition to the established name, Tana Lake on the map of Africa can sometimes meet as Tsana (a variant of writing and reading the Latin alphabet) or Dembea, similar to the name of the country that adjoins the northern shore. More or less precise coordinates are 11 ° 35'-12 ° 16 's. W. And 34 ° 39'-35 ° 20 'in. Etc. Why not absolutely accurate? Because in the rainy season, Tana Lake occupies a larger area than in the dry one. It absorbs the waters of many diverse arteries - from fairly large rivers, the largest of which is Abbay, to almost imperceptible streams. But it follows from it only one river - Bar El Azrek, also called the Blue Nile. Lake Tana is replete with islands of different sizes, but always small; The total area of isolated land is about 50 square kilometers, which, against a background of at least 3,000 (in dry time), of square kilometers of water seems to be a complete trifle.

Potential of Lake Tana

I must say that not in vain a few countries in their time claimed to be solely owning this huge body of water. According to approximate calculations, the installation of power stations on it could provide electricity to all of Africa - about 60 billion kWh would be enough for the whole continent. But at the moment there is only one such station, and then there are certain complaints about it: the construction has significantly reduced the flow in the waterfall with the romantic name Tis-Isat - "Smoke of Fire".

Lake Tana in Africa is replete with fish, shellfish and crabs. Their extraction is one of the main sources of food for local residents. There is also a lot of bird here, which settles along the coast and on the islets. An additional bonus is the absence in the waters of the lake of crocodiles, which are simply swarming with all the rivers flowing into Tana. Although there are plenty of hippos, but if you do not touch them, they peacefully coexist with people.

In recent years, Tana Lake has been gaining popularity with tourists. They are attracted by local beauties, historical monuments, and religious shrines.

Religious values

As already mentioned, Tana Lake is covered with small islands. In total there are 37. More than half of them have temples, churches and monasteries built. In their storehouses priceless ancient manuscripts and manuscript bibles are preserved, many walls are painted with unique frescoes, ancient Coptic crosses are preserved , and in the monastery you are allowed to look at the mummies of kings. The most mysterious monastery is on the island of Tana-Kirkos. It is almost impossible to get there, although many believers would willingly bow their knees in the monastery. According to legend, it is here that for eight centuries the priests hid from the desecration of the Ark of the Covenant. However, those who wish can visit the monasteries of the Khirdan Mehret (Sege peninsula), Narga Selassie (Dec), the monastery of Jesus.

Natural and historical monuments

In addition to the already mentioned waterfall, Tana Lake in Africa can boast of the fact that not far from it is the highest Ethiopian peak Ras-Dashen. On it, too, from time immemorial were located temples, but more it is known for its picturesqueness. The waterfalls still look worthwhile, although they are already not as impressive as before the construction of the station. But there from the 17th century a stone bridge built by the Portuguese survived. From an architectural point of view, the city of Gonder is very interesting, near the lake: you will not see such a number of castles, perhaps nowhere else. And the fortress of Fasil-Gabby is amazing even for many travelers. And it is worth, of course, to swim with local fishermen in the morning: a combination of wonderful views and exotic appearance of the "gondolier" (they still use national apparels, and not for attracting tourists) will probably be remembered for life.

How the lake was formed

All large African reservoirs got their "bed" as a result of a rift fault. Because of this, they are of considerable depth. It is quite another matter - the Tana Lake, the origin of the basin of which is the dam. That is, as a result of tectonic deflection in the immemorial times, a long and wide valley was formed. Small streams flowed along its bottom. And as a result of the eruption of the volcano and the earthquake associated with it, the drains turned out to be clogged. The exit from the "trap" was found (or struck for himself) only the Blue Nile. That is why even in the deepest place and in the period of floods, the Tana Lake barely reaches a depth of 14 meters, and in the dry months, and not deeper than 10.