In 1595, during the stay of Sir Walter Raleigh on the island of Trinidad, local residents showed a lake of bitumen, "black gold", Tierra de Brea. An enterprising European organized the transportation of natural asphalt for the construction of the Westminster Bridge. However, during transportation, some of the material melted, contaminating the horses.
Industrial development began in 1867. High quality road surface was made from the obtained raw materials. 10 million tons have been used in the Caribbean and far beyond.
Instead of water - bitumen
The asphalt mined at Peach Lake is laid on the streets of fifty states. Among them are the United States, Egypt, Japan, India, Singapore, and Great Britain.
The lake is located in the southwest of Trinidad. Instead of water in the depression, there is liquid asphalt. According to experts' forecasts, the natural storage contains more than 6,000,000 tons of valuable material. This amount should be enough for 4 centuries.
The enterprising discoverer used the find to tar the ship's skin. Currently, the reservoir produces tens of thousands of tons of bitumen. Now the amazing natural reservoir has also turned into a tourist attraction. Every year about 20 thousand travelers come to see it.
How the lake appeared
According to legend, in ancient times on the site of the reservoir there was a settlement of the Chima Indians. Once, in honor of the victory over enemies, people held a holiday. A lot of hummingbirds were eaten on it. For the extermination of the sacred birds, the gods were angry at the Indians. From their rage the earth opened up, swallowing up the village of those guilty of sacrilege. A bituminous lake appeared in the place of their dwellings.
In reality, Peach Lake was formed on geological faults. More precisely, the reservoir is located at their intersection. The bowels of the earth feed the Tierra de Brea with oil. After evaporation of the lighter fractions of black gold, heavier substances remain. Natural asphalt is composed of oil, clay and water.
Peach Lake is in no way inferior to other bituminous reservoirs in the ability to absorb various objects. They all sink to the bottom. Millennia pass, and the sunken riches surface. So on the surface were discovered the skeleton of a giant sloth, a mastodon tooth, and household items of Indian tribes. In 1928 the lake presented the researchers with a tree, whose age was equal to 4 thousand years.
The depth of the reservoir reaches 80 meters. A visit to this amazing place is best from June to December, during the rainy season. It is then that you can swim in Peach Lake. Water saturated with sulfur is recognized as curative.
There is an information center not far from the lake. In its building there is a museum of the history of the reservoir. The exposition presents finds taken from the lake at different times.
Tourist routes are allocated about a quarter of the area of the reservoir. Not all are marked. In dangerous areas, travelers who decide to do without a guide can swim in the resin. As you get closer to the center, the number of dangerous places increases.
And it is advisable to choose special shoes: comfortable, waterproof, with thick soles. A strong sulfur aroma is noticeably noticeable around the lake. Smoking is prohibited due to the high concentration of methane in the air.
