Luoma Lake 骆马湖

About Luoma Lake

Luoma Lake (骆马湖) is a large freshwater lake and flood-control reservoir in the northwest of Suqian (宿迁), Jiangsu, where Suqian meets Xuzhou (徐州). Its eastern shore lies north of Suqian's central city.

The lake fills a sunken, graben-type basin: the Tanlu Fault (郯庐断裂) runs north to south along its eastern side, and another set of north–south faults lies to the west. At its first-line control level the water covers 375 km², and it is counted among the four big freshwater lakes of Jiangsu; the Lakeside New Area administration calls it the province's fourth largest. It stretches up to 20 km across, is at most 5.5 m deep and holds more than 60 islands.

The earliest record of the name is in the History of Song (宋史): in 1131 the Jin general Talan (挞懒) crossed the Huai and camped at a lake called Male (马乐湖) in Suqian county. After the Yellow River moved south in 1128 and took over the lower Si (泗水) and Huai rivers, the area became a seasonal overflow basin for the Yi River (沂河) and the Middle Grand Canal (中运河). When the Yellow River swung north again in 1855, the Si, Yi and Shu (沭河) lost their outlet to the Huai, and the Yi's water collected in Luoma Lake. After the Huai flood of 1949 it was designated a temporary flood-storage reservoir; after the 1957 flood it became a permanent one, and the Zhanshan Sluice (嶂山闸) was finished in April 1961. Media reports in 2010 revealed that the stretch in Xinyi (新沂), Xuzhou, had been renamed Longma Lake (龙马湖) because Luoma sounds like luoma (落马, "to fall from a horse"), which was held to be taboo; many local people opposed the change.

The Suqian Luoma Lake National Tourist Resort follows 13 km of the eastern shore north of central Suqian and takes in the 12.7 km² Santai Mountain National Forest Park (三台山国家森林公园). Beach leisure, RV camping and boating are offered there, and the resort holds the Luoma Lake International Sand Sculpture Festival and a beach music festival.

What to look for

• The east-shore beaches used for the Luoma Lake International Sand Sculpture Festival and Beach Music Festival
• Santai Mountain National Forest Park (三台山国家森林公园), 12.7 km² of forest beside the eastern shore
• Lakeside Park (湖滨公园), an AAAA-rated scenic area in the Lakeside New Area, the district that wraps around the lake
• Qianlong Palace (乾隆行宫), a national protected site and AAAA-rated scenic area in the Lakeside New Area
• Zhanshan Sluice (嶂山闸), completed in 1961, which lets lake water out into the New Yi River (新沂河)

Location & getting there

Getting to Luoma Lake

• Search for 骆马湖 with 宿迁市 and 宿豫区／宿城区.