Ton Le Sap Lake
Trip Start
Feb 17, 2007
1
5
53
Trip End
Sep 06, 2008
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Chong Khneas,
Cambodia
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Ton Le Sap Lake is a diverse ecosystem. It is home to over 100 species of birds and 200 different fish. The lake provides enough fish to feed half the 14 million people in Cambodia. Floating fish farms are abundant. There are even a few crocodile farms. It's a strange feeling to get 2 meters away from these prehistoric marvels.
The income from fishing is about twice that of farming. The chance for a better livelihood is so great that even Vietnamese will cross the border. A little surprising when you consider the contentious relationship the two countries have had recently. Nevertheless, a small Vietnamese community on the lake has developed. I've tried to speak in their tongue several times, but no luck. Their dialect is the hardest of all. It seems to have a drawl while all the others have precise pronunciation. Even hello (xin chao) takes a bit of work.
Ton Le Sap is also home to a unique hydrologic event. During the dry season, the lake measures about 3,000 square kilometers. Most of the year, water drains out through the Ton Le Sap River into the Mekong Delta. During the wet season, however, the river reverses current. Ton Le Sap Lake can swell over four times its size to about 13,000 square kilometers. The depth at the fish farms will rise from 2 meters to 15 meters. Why? The mighty Mekong River. The two rivers converge near Phnom Penh. By that time, the Mekong River is carrying rainfall (and some snow melt) from Tibet, China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia. It's quite a sight from the air - no boundary to the lake. Just a gradual transition from water -> water with weeds -> water with trees -> water with large square boxes -> fields with water -> land.
Eric
