Marble lake at the Nizhny Baskunchak village

On the road from the village of Nizhny Baskunchak to the Big Bogdo mountain, there is a Marble Lake. It is located at the bottom of a quarry where gypsum is being developed commercially. Part of the quarry was flooded with underground water. Blocks of gypsum under the bright blue waters of the lake are very similar to marble, so the lake was named Marble.

On the shore of Marble lake there is a sandy beach, which is visited by many people from the surrounding villages and even from Akhtubinsk. Unfortunately, the lake is open for swimming only 1 day a year – August 14, on the Day of the Builder. During the rest of the days, the Austrian Knauf company is developing gypsum here.

The water of underground springs is fresh, but the rocks through it passes are salty. Therefore, the water in marble lake has the same composition as in Baskunchak lake, but the salt concentration is much lower. You cannot drown in Marble lake. The water pushes the body to the surface, but it is much softer than the brine in Baskunchak.

Since swimming in the lake is not possible most of the year, you can only go to the edge of the quarry on the way to the Big Bogdo mountain. Here you can watch equipment that is engaged in industrial production of gypsum.