Lake Hylia
| Lake Hylia | |
|---|---|
| Type | Lake |
| Location | Hyrule |
| Debut | The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past |
Lake Hylia is Hyrule's main lake which acts as a recurring location within the Zelda series.
Information
Lake Hylia is a lake that is usually located somewhere in the southern area of Hyrule. It is usually depicted as being very wide and deep. It contains the water which flows down Zora's River from Zora's Domain (or Veil Falls in The Minish Cap). Depending on the game, there are usually also small islands throughout the lake, as well as a type of fishing service. The bottom of the lake has also been shown to contain two temples (the Water and Lakebed Temples) which could possibly be the same temple. Zoras of either kind usually appear around the lake as well depending on the game.
Appearances
In A Link to the Past, it was located in the lower-right (southeastern) portion of Hyrule. There was little of note about the lake, except that the Ice Rod was found nearby, and a Pond of Happiness was located on a small island at the lake's center. Additionally, there was a Dark World portal (which could only be accessed with the Titan's Mitts) on the island, which is the only way of reaching the Ice Palace in the Dark World's counterpart to Lake Hylia. In Ocarina of Time, the lake was located towards the far south of the map. It contained a Lakeside Laboratory, a fishing pond and a pair of scarecrows. The Water Temple is also located at the bottom of the lake, but Link can only reach it as a teenager with the Iron Boots and the Zora Tunic. As a child, the only storyline advancement Link can pull off there is finding the bottle with Ruto's letter, which was washed down the river. During the seven years of Ganondorf's rule, Zora's Domain was frozen over, which resulted in Lake Hylia partially draining of its water. The Serenade of Water could be used to warp to the lake.
In Four Swords Adventures, Lake Hylia was the name of the first level, but it was actually set around what appeared to be Zora's Waterfall and the river. The game's map does contain anactual lake, although it is one located directly below Death Mountain. In The Minish Cap, Lake Hylia was the only recurring Hyrule location to be seen. It was located in the eastern section of Hyrule and was fed by Veil Falls, which was located directly to the north of it. The lake contained a Minish-sized dungeon that was called the Temple of Droplets. It also seemed to be a popular vacation spot, as Stockwell and Mayor Hagen both had cabins in the area.
In Twillight Princess, Lake Hylia was in the southwestern section of Hyrule and was part of the Lanayru Province, and it also contained Lanayru's spirit spring. It was shown to be much larger than usual, with tall cliffs and a large bridge known as the Great Hylian Bridge above it. Lake Hylia once more suffered from a drought in this game due to Zora's Domain being frozen over. Link managed to thaw them out, which caused Lake Hylia to soon be full of water again. At Lake Hylia, Link also had to fight the last of the Twilit Parasites, the Twilit Bloat, at Lake Hylia to save Lanayru from the Twilight Realm. Fyer, Falbi and Plumm all ran local businesses. The lake also concealed the Lakebed Temple, which was also known as the Zora Temple due to the Zoras worshiping there. Later on, Midna was able to teleport the sky cannon there, and it was able to fire Link (as well as Ooccoo and her son) to the City in the Sky after Fyer fixed it.
Trivia
- There is also an unnamed lake located in the center of the map of The Legend of Zelda which could possibly be Lake Hylia. It contains two islands which house the Eagle and Snake Labyrinths.