:: Lake Meninjau - West Sumatra Travel Guides ::
Lake Maninjau (Indonesian:
Danau Maninjau, Meninjau means Overlook or Observation )
is a caldera lake in West Sumatra, Indonesia. It is
located 16 km to the west of Bukittinggi, at [show
location on an interactive map] 0°19′S, 100°12′E.
Formation
The Maninjau caldera was formed by a volcanic eruption
estimated to have occurred around 52,000 years ago.
Deposits from the eruption have been found in a radial
distribution around Maninjau extending up to 50 km to
the east, 75 km to the southeast, and west to the
present coastline. The deposits are estimated to be
distributed over 8500 km² and have a volume of 220–250
km³.[2] The caldera has a length of 20 km and a width of
8 km
The lake
Lake Maninjau has
an area of 99.5 km², being approximately 16 km long and
7 km wide. The average depth is 105 m, with a maximum
depth of 165 m. The natural outlet for excess water is
the Antokan river, located on the west side of the lake.
It is the only lake in Sumatra which has a natural
outlet to the west coast. Since 1983 this water has been
used to generate hydroelectric power for West Sumatra.
Most of the people who live around Lake Maninjau are
ethnically Minangkabau. Villages on the shores of the
lake include Maninjau and Bayur.
Maninjau is a notable tourist destination in the region
due to its scenic beauty and mild climate. It is also
used as a site for paragliding.
Local agriculture
The
lake
is used for aquaculture, using karamba floating net
cages. The technique was introduced in 1992, and by 1997
there were over 2,000 cage units with over 600
households engaged. Each cage may have 3-4 production
cycles each year. There is evidence of pollution around
some karamba area.
On the edge of the lake, the landuse includes rice
fields in the swamps and the lower slopes. The villages
are bordered uphill by a large belt of forestlike tree
gardens, which dissolves into the upper montane forest
on the steepest parts of the slopes up to the ridge of
the caldera.
The
tree gardens include three typical components:
* Fruit trees including durian, jack fruit, cempedak,
rambutan, langsat, golden berries and water apples.
* Timber species including Toona sinensis and
Pterospermum javanicum.
* Spice trees including cinnamon, coffee, nutmeg and
cardamum.
Despite the hair-raising
entrance, Lake Maninjau is a place to relax, away from
the hassles of everyday travel. Days are bright and
sunny and evenings cool with little to distract you from
the important task of doing nothing. In the morning the
still water so perfectly reflects the sky and
surrounding crater that it is easy to think the lake is
naught but a mirror and not a terrifying 400 meters deep
The lake and mountains are
open invitations to swim, canoe, walk, hike, cycle, jog,
explore the local villages, markets and local flora and
fauna, or just relax generally while you enjoy the
scenery, climate, friendly locals and the beautiful
sunsets.
Lake Maninjau is a beautiful, 18 km x 18 km x 460 m
deep, clear, fresh water crater lake, surrounded by tree
covered mountains, and encircled by a 66 km road.
There are some small hot springs in the area. Although
set some 471 m above sea level, with air temperatures
averaging 27°C, the water in the lake is commonly about
30°C.
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