Lake Tus

Lake Tus is located 30 km north of the village of Shira, 4 km east of Saline Lake among the hilly treeless steppe of the northern part of Khakassia.

The lake valley is dry, rocky. On the west side of the lake Tus (sometimes called Lake Ace) is close to the mountain range, exceeding the water mirror by 140 meters. On the other side of the steppe valley is flat, open.

Lake Tus (Ace) is a bitter salt lake. Tus is known as the Dead Sea analogue. The high mineralization of its water is the main feature of Lake Tus. It is almost a brine, which is no longer in the region. Hence the name of the lake – “Tous” – in Turkic “salt”. The concentration of salt in the lake is so great that it can no longer dissolve and precipitates to the bottom, forming a thick crust up to 30 cm thick. The water in the lake is so salty and dense that you can lie on the water and read a newspaper.
The area of the lake is about 1.5 square km, the greatest depth is 4.5 m, the length of the coastline is 8 km (you can get around in 2 hours). The bottom of the lake almost throughout the area is silty. Sludge on Lake Tus has high medicinal properties it is used in the form of mud baths.

It was called Lake Tus until the nineteenth century Minusinsky Lake. For practical purposes Tus has been used since the middle of the XVIII century. It served as a source of salt extraction. For many years, salt from the lake in the province was in great demand. The lake belonged to the treasury, its protection was carried out by Cossacks who lived in the nearby village. Now this village is called Solenoozernoye, located four kilometers to the west, on the banks of White Jus.

According to scientists, Lake Tus is favorable for the treatment of diseases of the musculoskeletal system, cardiovascular system, nervous system, diseases of joints and metabolism, gynecological diseases. In the lake water, it is recommended to bathe children with rickets, adenopathy, weakness, exhaustion. The combination of the therapeutic effects of salt water and the amazing climate of Lake Tus has a positive effect on the entire human body, and also has a beneficial effect on strengthening the human immune system.

You can get to Lake Tus by the Achinsk-Abakan highway, which passes by the village of Solenoozerny. From the highway to the northern shore of the lake about 2 km.