Lake Vau i Dejës, lake in Albania

Lake Vau i Dejës is a large reservoir in northern Albania created by damming the Drin river, with clear water that winds through narrow mountain passes. Steep slopes covered in pine forest and shrubs border the water, with tall mountains rising directly from the shoreline and reflecting in the calm surface.

Construction of the three dams on the Drin at Vau i Dejës began in the 1960s with Chinese assistance; the hydroelectric plant was built between 1971 and 1973 and entered service in 1973. The Qyrsaq dam, a 375-metre rockfill structure 46 metres high, stands at the centre of Vau i Dejës, with the Zadeja and Rragam dams closing other sections of the valley. The hill of Shurdhahi, an island in the central basin, was fortified in antiquity as part of Roman Dalmatia Superior and later became the small bishopric town of Sarda, excavated in 1967–1972 before the water rose.

The small island of Shurdhahi in the central basin holds the ruins of Sarda, a medieval town and bishopric that grew from an Illyrian and Roman fortified hill above the Drin. Archaeologists investigated the area from 1967 to 1972 before the rising water submerged much of the old settlement. A church stands among the ruins, and the island can be reached by boat from Rragam.

The reservoir lies where the Drin leaves the northern highlands for the coastal plain, and a winding road runs along its southern shore to the Koman ferry. The Shurdhah island with the ruins of Sarda can be reached by boat from Rragam. Accommodation is limited to a few restaurants with a handful of hotel rooms.

The island of Shurdhah in the central basin was a fortified hill above the Drin in antiquity, held by Illyrians and Romans as part of Dalmatia Superior, and later grew into the small medieval town of Sarda, a bishop's seat. Archaeologists examined the area from 1967 to 1972 before the rising water submerged much of the old settlement. The island, with its ruins and a church, can be reached by boat from Rragam.