The Mysterious Case of Five Blues Lake Belize
October 10, 2007
Recently a mystery like something out of the “Twilight Zone” unfolded in South-Central Belize.
The mystery surrounds Five Blues Lake, a well-known tourist attraction near St. Margaret’s Village at Mile 27 on the Hummingbird Highway.
Five Blues Lake National Park and Forest Reserve is one of the most beautiful and picturesque places in Belize.
The park is comprised of approximately 4000 acres of protected broad-leaf tropical forest and steep limestone hills with a remarkable 10 acre lake in the center. The lake, due to it’s varying depths and the way the ambient like reflects off the water, displays at least five unique shades of blue—hence the name. Five Blues is popular with both locals and tourists, offering visitors a pleasant locale for a family picnic, hike, fishing or refreshing swim.
The first part of the mystery occurred on July 20, 2006, when local fishermen reported a noise that sounded like “the lake was crying”. The fishermen reported seeing “a huge whirlpool” in the lake, and watched in horror as the water level began dropping. The water level continued to drop over the next few days until the lake was virtually drained. (The fishermen also reported hauling off dozens of large sacks of stranded fish!)
Jan Meerman, an ecologist from the Cayo District who has studied Five Blues Lake extensively, explains the lake was originally formed by the blockage of an underground waterway in the limestone bedrock. This type of formation is called a “karstic lake” or “blue hole cenote”. Meerman theorizes the clay and other natural deposits that formed the blockage which kept the water in the lake somehow dissolved, allowing the water to drain like a big bathtub with the plug suddenly removed.
So the question is, how and why did this occur, and where did such a large volume of water go to in such a short amount of time? According to Meerman this is a normal occurrence with karstic lakes, albeit a very RARE occurrence. In fact, the local fishermen say they have never heard of this happening during their lifetimes or even their parent’s lifetimes! As for where the water went, that remains an interesting puzzle.
The second part of the mystery occurred nearly a year after the water’s spooky disappearance. On the morning of June 27th 2007 visitors to the park excitedly reported the Five Blues Lake had somehow been “refilled”.
Huh? That’s right, almost overnight the water levels had returned to normal and even above where they had been before the mysterious draining.
Logically, it appears the natural “plug” has reformed and allowed the water to collect again in the lake. But now the question is, where did such a large volume of water come from in such a short period of time?
Currently there aren’t any real answers, and Meerman hopes further study of the lake will shed some light on the weird occurrences at Five Blues.
In the meantime, park rangers from nearby St. Margaret’s Village have begun clearing the four mile road to the lake and the overgrown parking and visitors center at the lake. The road and tourist facilities had been neglected since the lake’s disappearance, since very few people were interested in visiting an empty pit.
And if you’re planning to visit Five Blues Lake, try not to watch any re-runs of the “Twilight Zone” before you go!
Comments
Got something to say?