The southern shore of the lake is traced by the highway connecting İzmir-Kuşadası-Söke to towns such as Milas and Bodrum that are situated in the south.

The northern shore of the lake, where steep slopes are covered by wild or semi-domesticated olive trees, is virtually untouched to this day.

The mountain chain of Beşparmak (Dağları) -also named (Latmus) in antiquity- rises on the back, sheltering the non-restored ruins of a dozen monasteries dating from the Byzantine era on its slopes.

The west coast overlooking the Balat Plain of Lake Bafa is a shallow area where migratory birds stay and breed in autumn and spring.

On the other hand, the changing chemical content and decreasing oxygen amount with the reduction and pollution of the river waters pouring into the lake caused the death of hundreds of thousands of fish and the ecosystem drifting into an irreversible junction.