What Makes This Lake So Mysterious?

This lake was sacred, exploited for war, and is now fiercely protected, but its greatest secret remains hidden. I stood at the edge of spotted lake, staring down at hundreds of colorful mineral pools shimmering under the summer Sunday. Each pool told a story, blue, green, yellow, shaped by ancient minerals carried down from nearby mountains. I felt the weight of history here. The lake once mined for weapons in World War I, sacred to the silks Okanogen nation, as a source of healing for centuries. Now fenced off, surrounded by countless ancient burial cairns, it's a place where science, spirituality, and survival collide. But as I looked closer, I realized the lake's true mystery wasn't just the colors or minerals, it was something far deeper, something the land itself seemed desperate to protect. What secret lies beneath those vibrant pools hidden from the world for thousands of years?