Isar

The Isar rises in the Karwendel range of the Alps near Scharnitz at 1,160 metres above sea level. Its longest headstream, the Lavatschbach, begins on the flanks of the Birkkarspitze. After about 22 kilometres the river crosses into Bavaria north of Scharnitz. Between Mittenwald and Krün the Isar is dammed for the first time and some of its water is diverted into the Rißbach canal. The Isar drains roughly 9,000 square kilometres of the Bavarian Alps and parts of the Karwendel mountains. Its average flow at the mouth is 174 cubic metres per second. The river has been harnessed by more than forty hydropower plants since industrialisation began. A large reservoir, the Sylvensteinsee, was built between 1954 and 1959 to generate energy and control floods. Visitors can follow the Isar from its alpine headwaters down to Munich’s gravel plain. The river passes through glacial moraines and Tertiary Hills before reaching the Danube. Along the way the Isartalverein maintains over 330 kilometres of hiking trails. In Munich the embankments have been removed and the bed widened to restore natural gravel islands and slow the water. The re-naturalised stretch offers improved flood protection and a pleasant riverside walk.