Nestled in the hills of Northern Ireland is a mysterious lake, often shrouded in fog.
Called Loughareema and locally referred to as ‘the vanishing lake’, the natural feature is capable of a remarkable magic trick.
It can be full in the morning but completely empty just a few hours later – as if the water has somehow ‘vanished’.
What makes Loughareema so unusual is there are no rivers flowing out of the lake, only three flowing in to it.
So why the lake does this has remained a mystery, subject to much speculation by geologists.
To most locals, the bizarre behaviour of Loughareema is known for inspiring a legion of ghost stories.
It is said that on nights when the lake is full, a phantom haunts the shoreline.
Others claim sightings of a kelpie, or water-ghoul – a grey or white horse-like creature that’s able to adopt human form.
Loughareema, also known as the vanishing lake, has a peculiar underground drainage system that scientists don’t fully understand
To most locals, Loughareema is known for inspiring a legion of ghost stories. It is said that on nights when the lake is full, a phantom haunts the shoreline. Others claim sightings of a kelpie -a grey or white horse-like creature that’s able to adopt human form (artist’s depiction)
The vanishing lake is regarded as one of Northern Ireland’s most enigmatic geological sites’, according to The Geological Society.
Dr Paul Wilson, a hydro-geologist at the British Geological Survey, has recently embarked on a detailed study of Loughareema.
‘Loughareema is a dynamic landscape and on approach to the lake it’s exciting to guess what state it will be in,’ he said.
The natural feature has three rivers flowing in to it and none flowing out of it, although it does have a sink at the very base.
This sink drains all of the water out of it and into an underground drainage system, which is not yet very well understood.
The details of [the underground drainage system] we currently know very little about,’ said Dr Wilson.
Dr Wilson’s study of Loughareema is in two parts; the first uses a camera to take time lapse images of the lake, hopefully capturing it filling and emptying.
Meanwhile, the second part uses water level loggers at various location to measure the rate that the lake is filling and emptying.
To most locals, the bizarre behaviour of Loughareema is known for inspiring a legion of ghost stories
One theory regarding the lake’s behaviour, outlined by Live Science, is to do with pressure and sediment.
The three rivers flowing into the lake bring with them not only water but debris that sinks to the lake bed and eventually covers the underwater drain.
Once the hole becomes completely blocked, the water level quickly rises, but when the water reaches a certain level, the pressure the water puts on the drain suddenly unblocks it.
Once this happens, the water can start to drain again and the lake starts to empty – and the entire process starts over again.
The name Loughareema comes from the Gaelic ‘loch an rith amach’, meaning ‘the lake that runs out’.
According to local legend, a coach and horses perished in the lake in the 19th century as they tried to cross it in the dead of night.
With little visibility in the dark, it was impossible to tell if water levels were high or low, the legend goes.
Unfortunately, the lake was full, with 20 feet of water, and the coach driver and both horses drowned ‘after a terrible struggle for life’.
The vanishing lake is regarded as one of Northern Ireland’s most enigmatic geological sites’, according to The Geological Society
‘People have claimed that they can hear the thrashing of hooves in muddy turmoil as they fight to escape the deep water,’ wrote storyteller Stephen O’Hara for North Word NI.
‘Something about the smooth hillsides which taper down centrally to form the little hollow in which the lake lies, makes it a nerve-tingling journey.’
He added: ‘Loughareema is not a place to find yourself after dark, and most certainly not during heavy rainfall.
‘For a hand may strike out at you from the darkness, grabbing for anything to hold onto in the struggle of life and death that still haunts the place.’
