Lough Leane

The Lough Leane (Irish Loch Lein; German " lake of learning " ) is by far the largest of the three lakes in Killarney National Park in County Kerry in the southwest of Ireland. The other lakes are the Muckross Lake ( Middle or Lake ) and Upper Lake.

The Lough Leane comprises about 19 km ²; the three lakes come together on an area of ​​22 km ².

In Lough Leane, the monastery island Innisfallen Iceland lies with the Innisfallen Abbey from the 7th century; the name of the lake perhaps derives from the assumed monastery activities. In Iceland Ross, a former other island on the eastern side of the lake, already the mining of copper ore took place in the Bronze Age. It is the oldest known copper mines in the British Isles.

On the eastern shore of Lough Leane is on the lake with the former Fort Ross Castle is another testimony of Irish history and around 2.5 km from the lake with the Killarney tourist busiest city in the southwest of Ireland. Further west, extends on the north shore of the lake to the level of the fossa of the most exclusive golf courses in Ireland. On the opposite shore is 5 km from Killarney Muckross Abbey from the 15th century.