The current Ubari Lakes are a group of about 20 lakes set amidst the landscape of towering dunes and palm fringed oases of the Ubari Sand Sea. To reach these lakes tourists usually drive from Sabha to Tkerkiba where an excellent camping site is used as the base to explore the lakes as well as Wadi Matkhandouch. The depth of the lakes according to one Libyan diving centre varies from seven meters deep (lake Gaberoun) to 32 meters deep (lake al-Dibbanah, near Ghadames). Some of these lakes are slowly drying out owing to drought and artificial drainage of underground resources.
Among the most picturesque of the lakes are Gaberoun and Umm al-Maa (the Mother of Water). Also there are two more beautiful lakes which are rarely visited by tourists. These are: Umm al-H’isan (the Mother of the Horse)located north of Gaberoun and at-Tarhouna about 11km from Umm al-H’isan. Lake Gaberoun is one of the largest and most beautiful lakes of the great sand sea of Ubari beautifully set amidst the magnificent sand dunes with palm trees on one side and the ruins of the old village on the other. Most of the lakes of the Libyan interior are highly carbonated enabling swimmers to easily float without exerting any effort. The content of salt is rather high nearly five times saltier than seawater. Some of the lakes are home for a harmless tiny red shrimp that thrive in the shallow waters of the lake.
