Lake Nicaragua

Lake Nicaragua is a big tourist destination in Nicaragua because of its sheer size. Lake Nicaragua is the biggest lake in Nicaragua, and in all of Central America at a whopping 3,149 square miles in area. It is the lake where approximately 40 different rivers drain, including the San Juan which forms part of the border between Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Although lots of people visit Lake Nicaragua, it is not safe to swim in because of volcanic rocks in the lake on its beds and shores. Because of the volcanic rocks, there is not much wildlife living inside the lake. Since Lake Nicaragua is so big, there are about 400 small islands spread out across the lake. The Indigenous name of Lake Nicaragua is Cocibolca. And soon after it was discovered, it was used as a place to transport gold that was obtained during the California Gold Rush. Lake Nicaragua is an old and well known part of Nicaragua and it is also a part of many people’s lives.