Al-Ahsa’s Yellow Lake: Between the present and the future

AL-AHSA: The Yellow Lake is located to the east of the city of Omran in Al-Ahsa, and is one of the lakes in the Gulf with its historic name given by the inhabitants of the east of the Arabian Peninsula. Surrounded by sand dunes, it is somewhat difficulty to reach the area and there is a need at the present to use four-wheel drive vehicles to access the site.
The lake is composed primarily of agricultural drainage water accumulating in its small banks, and there is another source of water which comes from nearby drainage water treatment plant. Around the lake, various desert plants grow, especially fern which grows extensively around its edges.
The Yellow Lake experiences a visit twice a year by migratory birds, from cold places such as Canada, Russia, Iran, India, as they look for warm climate, and these vary from large birds like ducks and geese to sparrows and small birds.
Meanwhile, some citizens appealed to the authorities concerned pay more attention to develop the Yellow Lake, expressing their wishes to see this lake as a main tourist destination in the Kingdom relying on the site’s unique tourism potentials.
Khaled Al-Faridah, director general of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTNH) in Al-Ahsa, said: “There is a government program to develop Yellow Lake to be one of the main natural resorts in Saudi Arabia,” confirming that this lake is one of Al-Ahsa’s historic landmarks.
At a workshop, held recently at King Faisal University under the title “Yellow Lake: Between the present and the future,” Al-Faridah said that commercial caravans used to pass by this lake in the past to get water supplies, in addition, it attracted the first inhabitants of this region to settle around the lake waters.
When the lake’s water level changed, people resorted to digging wells for water in the southern side of the lake and when disputes arose over the wells, Khuynj Palace was established to help resolve this conflicts, the official said.
He said that Yellow Lake now is one of the main destinations for tour operators in Al-Ahsa, lovers of desert tourism and photography enthusiasts.