Lake Texcoco, Natural lake in central Mexico.
Lake Texcoco is a lake in central Mexico that has been largely drained and whose remaining areas consist of salt flats and wetlands. These zones lie in the eastern part of the Valley of Mexico at an altitude of 2,236 meters (7,336 feet) and still show traces of the former water landscape.
The lake formed thousands of years ago through volcanic activity and reached its highest level around 11,000 years ago when it covered wide stretches of the valley. Spanish conquerors began draining it in the 16th century, a process that continued over centuries and eventually led to the nearly complete conversion of the water surface into urban land.
The lake once supported the city of Tenochtitlan, which sat on artificial islands built from mud and roots and connected to the shores by wide causeways. These floating gardens formed the center of a sprawling trade network, with canoes carrying goods between neighborhoods every day.
The former lake bed can be reached using several metro lines in Mexico City that serve stations in the eastern and northeastern parts of the urban area. Visitors will find open spaces with sparse vegetation and scattered wetlands that are especially pleasant to explore in the morning or late afternoon.
The draining of the lake has caused large parts of Mexico City to slowly sink as the soft ground compresses without water. Some buildings in the old town now show a clear difference in height between their foundations and the streets, a silent witness to this geological change.
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