Kaptai Lake

Kaptai Lake was created between 1957 and 1962 by damming the Karnaphuli for a hydroelectric station, flooding a wide valley in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and covering something like a hundred thousand acres including the old Rangamati town, the palace of the Chakma raja and a great deal of farmland; the displacement of tens of thousands of people, largely Chakma, is part of the history of the region and is not resolved. What is there now is a large body of water winding between forested hills with islands, submerged trees standing in the shallows and villages along the shore. Boats are the transport, and hiring one to move between shore points and islands is how visitors see it.

What you actually see

• Water winding between forested hills - the flooded valley system.
• Submerged trees in the shallows - trunks standing in the water.
• Boat transport between villages - the way people move on the lake.
• Islands in the reservoir - the hilltops the water left standing.

When to go

November to March. A day for a boat trip, two to see more of the shore. Foreign visitors to parts of the hill tracts need permits and may need to travel with a guide; check current rules before going.

Honest expectations

The lake exists because a valley and its communities were flooded, and the displacement remains a live grievance; it is worth knowing that rather than treating it as scenery. Permit rules for foreigners in the hill tracts change and are enforced. Boat prices are negotiated.

Nearby

Rangamati is on the shore; Kaptai town is at the dam.