Does anyone realize Fu Xian lake is a huge outlet for the water table of the Yunnan plateau and the Tibet plateau?
This would make it a huge spring...right?

Spring City....

That explains why the water is so freaking cold. I used to think it was just the depth.

The water in some areas are quite warm due to scattered hot springs.

Alex where did you go swimming?

I find it quite warm on the surface.

Mike, I think your Canadian? I just remembered what I think is cold is not to you people from the land up and over :)

I've been there in August. The water seemed a bit chilly, but that's because the sun felt so hot. I went at the man made beach at some big hotel. I think it's called Angsana or something like that.

Yeah I'm a hockey stick so temperature is a little different compared to Oz or SoCal.

How does that work being an outlet for the Tibetan plateau? Fuxian Lake's quite a bit farther south and lower elevation than the Tibetan plateau, is it not?

Hi Geogramatt.

Good question and I'll try to explain my theory.

Water does flow down, southwards in this case as all other surface water in SW china.

Firstly it helps to understand how Yunnan was formed geologically, resulting in north /south valleys and underground limestone cave systems reaching hundreds of kilometers.

Secondly the tibet and yunnan plateau is tilted southwards which helps the water tables flow southwards.

Other Clues to the theory:

On google earth the valley running northwards from Fu xian goes unbroken up to the Yangtzy river area in Dongchuan and northwards to Sichuan(Tibet plateau),this valley has similar lakes and caves.

This valley must be( i assume) an old fault line which water, over time, has eroded/dissolved away an underground river system in the limestone.(this has been proven by caving experts how the worlds longest caves in SW china and SE Asia were formed)

South and East of the lake the mountain ranges "cups" the valley forming Fu Xian.

The strata in south west china(east tibet plateau and yunnan plateau) has major limestone layers as we know from all the caves and carsts formations.

An obvious clue:
Scuba divers know of the huge below surface caves on the west shore of fu xian with a strong out flowing current, the true source of the lake's clear water.

No surface rivers flow into fu xian lake, let alone clean surface water: The volume of this clean lake could not be supported by surface sources, the lake at one point is 13 km wide x 35 km long and an average of 80 meters deep.

Another observation i
Ive seen on chinese charts depicting earthquake locations show a void of earthquakes in the same area as the underground river system.

This underground river system may hold clues to why kunming area, with vast areas north and south of it hasnt had earthquakes..
As we know limestone when dissolving erodes but also deposits calcium . Could this river system have fused together an old fault line, cemented together a big chunk of central yunnan with active faults all around it?