Erhai Lake is one of the most beautiful lakes in China, and it is the second-largest freshwater lake in Yunnan Province. The people of Dali consider Erhai Lake to be their “mother lake”. Erhai Lake is important to their lives.

Erhai is situated at 1,972 meters above sea level. In size, the North-South length of the lake is 40 kilometers and the East-West width is roughly 7–8 kilometers. Its area is 250 square kilometers, making it the second-largest highland lake in China, after Dianchi Lake. Its circumference reaches 116 kilometers, its average depth is 11 meters, and its total storage capacity of 2.5 billion cubic meters.

The lake serves as a backdrop to all of Dali City and sandwiches Dali Town in the west against the Cang Mountain. The lake's head is at Shangguan Town, its northern extremity, and its southernmost point is at Xiaguan Town. The lake receives water from the Miju and Mici Rivers in the north, the Bolou River in the east, and smaller streams from the Cang Mountains in the west. Yangbi River, to the south, is the lake's outlet and eventually flows into the Lancang River (Mekong River).

Erhai Lake is in the shape of an ear, hence its name Erhai (Ear Sea). This plateau lake is like a deep blue gem set in the green land. When the breeze blows, its surface is billowed into wavelets, sparkling in the sunlight.

Erhai or Er Lake (Chinese: 洱海), is an alpine fault lake in Yunnan province, China. Erhai was also known as Yeyuze (叶榆泽) or Kunming Lake (昆明池) in ancient times. During the Han to Tang dynasty, there was an ancient ethnicity named Kunming Yi or Kunming Barbarian (昆明夷) who lived in the neighboring region of Erhai lake. Therefore, the lake was also called "Kunming Lake". 

The lakeshore can be explored by hiking. Highlights include Erhai Park and the Butterfly Springs on the Western bank. Islands on the lake – include Guanyin Ge, Jinsuo Island (金梭岛; 'Golden Shuttle Island'), Nanzhao Folklore Island (南诏风情岛), and Xiaoputuo Island (小普陀) – are also available for visits.

The lake is an important food source for the local people (Bais), who are famous for their fishing method: their trained cormorants catch fish and return them to fishmongers. The birds are prevented from swallowing their fish by rings fixed around their neck.

There is, or was, rich biodiversity in Erhai. It is one of three major Yunnan lakes with a high number of endemics, the two other being Fuxian and Dian (Dianchi). Of the 23 fish species and subspecies known from Erhai, 8 are endemic. In contrast, the lake is now home to more than 10 introduced fish species.

Reference: Wikipedia

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