Lac Salé: legend says this remote, “bottomless” lake was created by a curse!

2 min read

2 months ago Ivan

Nestled next to the small village of Mitsamioli on the northern tip of Grand Comore (or Ngazidja), the largest island in the nation of Comoros, located in the Indian Ocean off the southeast coast of Africa between Madagascar and Mozambique, a turquoise saltwater lake sits in a crater just yards from the crystalline ocean.
This small lake, known as Lac Salé or Lac Niamawi, likely formed as a result of volcanic activity from the nearby Mount Karthala sometime in the 16th century.
During the eruption of the volcano, the city of Niamawi was demolished where this crater lake is now located.

However, and maybe more interestingly, local folklore has another origin story for the so-called “bottomless” lake.
According to the legend a holy man (or, according the version you heard, a witch), came to the village of Niamawi asking for water, but everyone refused them.
In revenge, the witch cursed the town, dooming its inhabitants to the wrath of an erupting volcano and, once the lava and ash cleared, the lake had replaced the now-submerged town.
A more recent story says that back in 1977 a group of Belgian divers hoping to explore the crater dived down into the lake never to resurface again.

Either way, throughout the day, the lake seems to change color, shifting from aquamarine to a deep green-blue. A layer of volcanic rock rests on the top edge of the crater, and it continues to be a beautiful hike for visitors and locals alike, with also a short trail that winds around the crater and the nearby volcanic hill offering beautiful views of the vast ocean beyond.
Nowadays, the lake has not been scientifically examined, since it is considered to be really dangerous to go inside.