Wolfgangsee

The Wolfgangsee, with older names also Abersee, is a lake in Austria. It lies mostly in the northeast of the province of Salzburg, a small part of one of Upper Austria, and he has 13 km ² one of the largest and most well-known lakes in the Salzkammergut region. Am Wolfgangsee Salzburg Sankt Gilgen and Strobl communities and the Upper Austrian town of Sankt Wolfgang im Salzkammergut lie. The area around Lake Wolfgang is viewed as a popular tourist destination (Holiday Region Wolfgangsee ).

Naming

The original name of the lake is " Abersee ", found in older case also " Äbersee " and similar variants. The first documentary evidence dates with "ad Abriani lacu " (Latin, orig. During Abriansee ) from the year 788 A Celtic origin of the word part - But is excluded, and it performs the naming of the lake on a person with the Old High German name Aparin back, who exercised here fishing rights and / or has had property. ( The same naming motif is adopted by several other lakes in the immediate and wider environment.)

A designation of the lake to the town of St. Wolfgang is first found with " Wolfgangersee " already in 1381, but remained for a long time an exception. The name after the settlement also finds a place in the first maps of the 16th and 17th centuries, but a final displacement of the name " Abersee " with " Wolfgang " is returned only to the strongly increasing tourism in the area after the Second World War. The Wolfgangsee is now known little " Abersee ".

The name " Abersee " had spread to the whole area over time around the lake. So is spoken by St. Wolfgang " in aberseeischen Gebürg [= mountain ] " 1599. Also, a settlement located at the lake got its name of today termed Abersee district of the town of St. Gilgen on the municipal boundary to Strobl.

A popular explanation of the name " Abersee " stems from the view that the lake rarely, in unusually cold winters, zufriere, so colloquially aper stay in normal winters. " Abersee " can be linguistically but not associate with the word " No Snow " in context, especially since this is also called " snow- free" means not " ice-free " (in the sense of frozen ice water masses). In addition, a relatively frequent freezing of Lake Wolfgang, not to prove. This misconception was spread in an ethnographic work of the lawyer and local historian August Prinzinger the Elder. from the year 1890.

Geography

The Wolfgang has an area of 13 km ². It lies at an elevation of 538 meters and is at its lowest point 114 feet deep. It is divided into two lake basins through the alluvial fan of the zinc creek on the south bank. At this point, the lake is only 200 meters wide. The zinc Bach is the main tributary of Lake Wolfgang, the outflow is via the Ischler Ache ( Ischl ) at the eastern end. The mean discharge ( MQ ) is 5.4 m³ / s, the (theoretical ) water renewal time 3.9 years.

The adjacent locations Strobl, St. Gilgen, Abersee and Ried are on salzburgischem area; only the town of Sankt Wolfgang im Salzkammergut region in Upper Austria.

As a connection from St. Wolfgang to St. Gilgen on the north side of the lake there is only one walk on the collection of Falkenstein.

Geology

The lake was formed by the erosive action of the Traun glacier. At the northwest and southeast end of the lake extends extensive moraine that lines and the lake basin. By glaciers conclusion conditionally, the lake level was in the early Late Glacial originally at about 600 m. For the period around 18,500 BC, a late glacial lake level of 544 m was detected, which is already largely the present level was reached by 538 m. Through the entry of sediment Zinkenbach was a transformation of uniformly shaped lake basin, causing the approximately 2 km wide lake was divided by this narrowing to about 250 m into two basins. The drainage of the lake was always on the Talfurche the Ischl. A connection with the Lake Fuschl and the drainage on the Mondsee is excluded.

The Wolfgangsee is south-west facing northeast side, framed by the slightly decaying Gosau layers of marl, sandstone and conglomerate, mainly through the Lias, Hierlatz and thitonischen Plassenkalke of Sheep Mountain.

Tourism

The main source of income of the local population is tourism; in the three Wolfgangseeorten currently are 8,500 guest beds, bringing about 900,000 overnight stays per year can be achieved. About 75 % of overnight stays are accounted for by the summer season. In 1998 joined the communities Strobl, St. Gilgen and St. united in a common tourist organization Wolfgang, the " Wolfgangsee Tourism Society" ( WTG). This represents the tourism region " Wolfgangsee holiday region " and is also a member of the "Municipal Association Salzkammergut " (organized as a limited company ).

On the Wolfgangsee, there has long ship and ferry traffic. Today is operated in the summer months and during the festive season liner shipping. The Wolfgangsee boat was, as emanating from St. Wolfgang Schafbergbahn until 2005 part of the Austrian Federal Railways and was spun off afterwards. Both are now operated by the Salzkammergutbahn GmbH, their shareholders is almost 100% of the infrastructure company Salzburg AG. In addition to the regular service, which is used mainly to trip purposes, including various special trips. In addition, between St Wolfgang and Abersee exists independent of the shipping company the ferry for pedestrians and cyclists. For walkers there is a signposted, approximately 27 km long path around the lake.

The Wolfgang was appointed to a reference water due to its high water quality of the European Union. Among other things, here's the Perlfisch home, which occurs only in very clean waters. The lake is classified as oligotrophic, the Secchi depth is 10.3 m.

The lake is mostly due to its year-round very clear water also as an excellent diving area. Divers will find at the " Franzosenschanze " a bizarre underwater landscape with sunken trees in front. Immediately before the " Fürbergbucht " challenging dives can be made ​​to the nearby underwater part of Falkenstein, and before the " Naval Academy " in St. Gilgen are artifacts from the time of the Second World War through the lake bottom.

The Falkensteinwand has been for many years a popular meeting place for ( hobby ) Klipspringer. With a jump of up to 28 m the Falkensteinwand is one of the world's highest sea cliffs, one of which is bound.

Nearby Cities

• Abersee: The place is part of St. Gilgen, it lies in the southern center of Lake Wolfgang and is divided by the Zinkenbach. The place is known for earlier been moved there zinc Malerkolonie.
• Furberg is a St. Gilgen associated region on the northeast shore of the lake. In this area there are swimming pools, catering establishments, the direct output point of the footpath over the Falkenstein to Ried and links to the Wolfgangsee boat.
• Ried is part of the town of St. Gilgen, but which is separated by the Falkensteinwand from the main village. He can be reached by road only around the lake on St. Wolfgang. Distinctive and highly visible which is built in 1902, castle-like main building of the holiday Boyshorts am Wolfgangsee, a club which is dedicated to child welfare.
• St. Gilgen: became known as the town residence of Anna Maria Mozart, the mother of the composer Wolfgang Amadeus. The community was " walk in the door " to the Salzkammergut region since the Middle Ages Salzburg. The place witnessed the same as Strobl, its first heyday as a summer resort in the period after the Second World War.
• St. Wolfgang: The place is named after Saint Wolfgang, who, according to legend, threw an ax and a church built on the spot where they landed. The community at the foot of the mountain sheep was of pilgrimage in the Middle Ages and was the most significant pilgrimage site in Central Europe. The church, built in the Gothic style, is home to a well-known, carved by Michael Pacher altarpiece.
• Strobl: The community is residence of many artists, writers and actors. In the resort still exist several country mansions from the imperial period.

Photo Gallery

Falkensteinwand

Wolfgang evening