Bear Lake

Autor Visit Mures

Autor Portik Antal

Autor Visit Mures

Autor Portik Antal

Autor Visit Mures

Autor Csíki István

Full description

The Bear Lake is the world’s largest heliothermic lake with a unique phenomenon, during which the salt water layer - as a result of the greenhouse effect, caused by the freshwater layer from the surface - can store the heat from the sun, so the lake becomes a naturally heated, salt-water pool. As a result of the heliothermic phenomenon, the water of the lake can warm up to even 40°C. The potential of the lake was discovered by a landowner, Sófalvi Illyés Lajos, who officially founded the Upper Baths in 1900. First the lake was named Lake Illyés, but after 1910 it became generally known as the Bear Lake, due its shape similar to a standing bear.

The formation process was started by a downpour, after which the freshly mowed grass from the hay-field was carried in a sinkhole and blocked it. The brooks started to fill in the newly formed lake bed and the water started to dissolve the salt under the surface. Consequently, the ground was torn and the lake bed became deeper. The movement of the salt, which caused the collapse of the dolina from the hay-field, started in 1860, but the lake reached its current shape during 6 years, between 1875 and 1881.

The length of the formation process was influenced by the gradual collapse of the ground and by the fact that the incoming brooks filled the created hole.

The lake, situated 502 m above sea level in a picturesque environment, lies on a 4 hectare area, with the maximum depth at 18 meters. In the beginning, its hottest layers measured up to 80°C, but unfortunately, the lake water layers have been affected by the bathers and the inflowing streams, and as a result, the temperature of the water is decreasing from year to year. During the summer season, swimming in the lake is forbidden for tourists between 1 - 3 pm, because the water is left to rest, to restore the balance of the sweet and salt water layers.

The salt concentration in the water is almost 250 g/l (the sea generally has 35 g/l, while the Dead Sea has 280 g/l), the water contains 64 tonnes of dissolved salt, due to which the Bear Lake is also called as the Dead Sea of Transylvania. The medicinal mud from the bottom of the lake is used to heal infertility and salt water is recommended for locomotory, dermatological and gynecological treatments.

On May 27, 2020 the Bear Lake celebrated its 145th birthday, which is a rarity in the case of heliothermal lakes.

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Bear Lake

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