> I suppose that is soft earth, but I'm also picturing this as a
place
> that physically, anything falls in, it is gone forever, buried
deep
> in muck. Spiritually I want it to have the same effect, a
bottomless
> spiritual pit that engulfs things, maybe not destroying them, but
> keeping them lost in its depths forever. Which is why shamans can
> sometimes get interesting items/spirits out....
I'd agree with Henk that this has trollish overtones, and/or
Asraelian ones.
It also makes me think that your second description may be better,
with the lake acting as a physical portal into Asraelia's otherworld?