1 Best Lakes & Backwaters in Orissa (Odisha)

At a distance of 44 km from Puri, Chilika Lake is Asia's biggest inland salt water lagoon situated near Satapada in Odisha. Located at the mouth of the Daya River, Chilika Lake is the largest coastal lagoon in India and also the second largest salt water lagoon in the world after the New Caledonian barrier reef in New Caledonia.

The lake is studded with small islands including the most charming Honeymoon Island and the Breakfast Island. Spreads across 1,100 sq. km, the pear shaped lake extends from Bhusandpur in Puri district in the North to Rambha-Malud in Ganjam district in the South, separated from the Bay of Bengal by a 60 km long narrow strip of marshy islands and sand-flats. The lake is an ecosystem with large fishery resources. It sustains more than 150,000 fisher-folk living in 132 villages on the shore and islands. In 1981, Chilika Lake was designated the first Indian wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention.

The lake also acts as one of the most supportive ecosystems in the name of Chilika Lake Sanctuary. It is the largest wintering ground for migratory birds on the Indian sub-continent. Birds from Caspian Sea, Lake Baikal, Aral Sea and other remote parts of Russia, Kirghiz steppes of Mongolia, Central and southeast Asia, Ladakh and Himalayas come here. White bellied sea eagles, graylag geese, purple moorhen, jacana, herons and flamingos are among the many species which make the lake a bird watcher's delight. Chilika, in fact, is ...