Yeak Laom Lake - Rattanak Kiri Province
Yeak Laom Lake is located about 5
kilometers southeast of central Banlung. This beautiful lake is a crater
formed after a volcanic eruption over 4000 years ago; the diameter of
this lake is about 800 meters and it bears about 50 meters of clear
water.
At one end, there are two wooden
platforms for tourists to view the lake up close, but some people cannot
resist a dip to feel the warmth of the water for themselves.
A path surrounds the lake, providing a
leisurely track for trekking. A walk around the lake takes around forty
minutes. Midway along the track, at the western end of the lake, there
is a small visitor center which exhibits and sells local handicrafts
such as musical instruments, crossbows, baskets, scarves and handbags
made from hand-woven cloth.
Wild pigs and rare birds including
eagles can be seen around the lake and tourists may also spot rarely
seen large brightly colored butterflies; some with wing spans of up to
20 centimeters.
The Cambodian term ‘ Yeak Laom ’, translated into English means ‘giants’ and ‘surroundings’. Thus, the legend of the lake, often recited by local raconteurs, goes as follows:
In ancient time, there was a very
powerful giant king who had the most attractive daughter. Both her hair
and body emitted a fragrant aroma so the giant king named her ‘Neang Sak
Kra Oob’ which means ‘fragrant hair girl’. When she grew up, a strong,
handsome man came to woo her. Their love for each other soon grew up
strong but this lovely couple was afraid that the giant king would
eventually discover their secret love so they both decided to flee into
the deep forest.
Soon after, the giant king learned of
his daughter’s situation and he was both deeply shocked and distresses.
First he expressed pity for his daughter. Then he assembled a battalion
of troops to search for his beloved daughter. His entire kingdom and the
jungle were checked by his gigantic army of soldiers but they could
find no sign of her even as they finally reached the thick forest where a
pond is located today.
The giant king suspected that his
daughter might be in the forest so he deployed his massive forces to
secure the perimeter of the forest. Suddenly, he ordered all his troops
to pull out of the forest and dig there surrounding ground very deeply
to find his precious daughter. They all dug with vigor but the soldiers
eventually became exhausted and their efforts were to no avail. Finally,
the giant king reluctantly ordered all his troops to return to his
kingdom.
The giant hold dug by the giant king’s
troops, including the uprooting of trees, in an unsuccessful effort to
find the King’s daughter, has left this deep pond in the Ratanak Kiri
area. That is why the local people call this site “Yeak Laom Pond”.
But there is a slightly different
version from that previously mentioned. This version declares that there
was a giant commander who had tried to arrest the giant king’s daughter
and separate her from her lover. When the troops of the commander
surrounded the mountain where they were hiding, this lovely couple
thought that there was no way to escape.
Because their true love, both of them
decided to wish to disappear into the ground. They both started to pray
to the spiritual power, Preah Eisey, and to all of the gods, ‘with your
respectful magical powers protecting this area in perpetuity, please, we
will sacrifice our live by making the sink down ’. Suddenly, the
mountain area quickly sunk into the ground including the giant king’s
daughter and her lover. This is why this plateau top has become a deep
pond and is the reason the local people call this pond ‘Yeak Laom’.
Another ancient folktale claims that the
story of the origin of this ‘Yeak Loam’ name is completely different
and likely more believable. The recalls that ‘Yeak’ in the language of
the ancient minority living there meant the ‘owner or the chief of the
villagers’. The word ‘Loam’ was the name of the person who was a former
chief of that area. So, there for the words ‘Yeak Laom’ is a respectful
reminder of the sacred and spiritual nature of their ancient leader that
used to rule the local minority people in happiness and harmony a long
time ago.
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