Lake Bohinj (Slovene: Bohinjsko jezero, German: Wocheiner See), covering 318 hectares (790 acres), is the largest permanent lake in Slovenia.[2][notes 1] It is located within the Bohinj Valley of the Julian Alps, in the northwestern Upper Carniola region, and part of Triglav National Park.
| Lake Bohinj | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Lake Bohinj | |
| Location | Municipality of Bohinj, Triglav National Park |
| Coordinates | 46°16′56.31″N 13°51′29.6″E / 46.2823083°N 13.858222°E |
| Type | Glacial lake |
| Primary inflows | Savica |
| Primary outflows | Sava Bohinjka |
| Catchment area | 107 km2 (41 sq mi) |
| Basin countries | Slovenia |
| Max. length | 4.35 km (2.70 mi) |
| Max. width | 1 km (0.62 mi) |
| Surface area | 3.18 km2 (1.23 sq mi) |
| Average depth | 30 m (98 ft) |
| Max. depth | 45 m (148 ft) |
| Water volume | 99.7×106 m3 (80,800 acre⋅ft) |
| Residence time | 0.3 to 0.5 years[1] |
| Surface elevation | 526 m (1,726 ft) |
| References | [1] |
Geography
editLake Bohinj is 4.2 km (2.6 mi) long and 1 km (0.62 mi) at its maximum width.[3] It is a glacial lake dammed by a moraine. The largest of the streams that flow into the lake, the Savica ('little Sava'),[4] is fed from Črno jezero (Black Lake), the lowest-lying lake in the Triglav Lakes Valley. The outflow at the eastern end is the Jezernica creek which merges with the Mostnica to form the Sava Bohinjka, which in turn becomes the larger Sava River at the confluence with the Sava Dolinka. As found out already by Belsazar Hacquet in the 18th century, much more water leaves Lake Bohinj than enters it, which is explained with subterranean sources of water.
The clear waters of the lake are the habitat of brown trout, burbot, European chub, common minnow and Arctic char, eight genera of molluscs, as well as of numerous algae species. It is a popular day trippers' destination for swimming and other water sports. On the shore is a statue of the legendary Goldhorn (Zlatorog) chamois, whose story was perpetuated by the poet Rudolf Baumbach.
Notes
edit- ^ Lake Cerknica, an intermittent lake, is larger than Lake Bohinj during its flood seasons, but disappears entirely during dry seasons.
References
edit- ^ a b Lake Bohinj in "Alpine lakes. Survey between land and water" (PDF). (52.1 MB) , page 43
- ^ Hlad, Branka; Skoberne, Peter, eds. (2001). "Characteristics of Biological and Landscape Diversity in Slovenia". Biological and Landscape Diversity in Slovenia: An Overview (PDF). Ljubljana: Environmental Agency of the Republic of Slovenia, Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning. p. 13. ISBN 961-6324-17-9. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-11-25.
- ^ Royal Geographical Society (1856) "Wocheiner-See" A Gazetteer of the World: or, Dictionary of geographical knowledge, compiled from the most recent authorities, and forming a complete body of modern geography -- physical, political, statistical, historical, and ethnographical A. Fullarton, Edinburgh, Scotland, p. 529, OCLC 20348227; note that Lake Bohinj was formerly known in English by its German name Wocheiner See, or sometimes Lake Wochein.
- ^ Baedeker, Karl (1879) "Terglou: The Valley of the Wocheiner Save" The Eastern Alps: Including the Bavarian Highlands, the Tyrol, Salzkammergut, Styria, and Carinthia (4th ed.) Dulau and Co., London, p. 353, OCLC 4018143