Wolayersee

The Lake Wolayer is a mountain lake in the Carnic Main Ridge of Carinthia, near the Plöcken Pass. It sits at 1,951 metres above sea level in a doline shaped by Ice Age glaciers. The lake covers four hectares and has no surface inflow, yet its water level stays steady thanks to heavy rainfall of up to 2,500 millimetres a year. Underground flows feed springs on both sides of the border, one in Austria and another in Italy. The western shore slopes gently while the eastern side drops steeply to a depth of nearly fourteen metres. The lake is worth visiting for its clear, nutrient-poor water and unusual biology. Its surface rarely warms above fourteen degrees and stays frozen for six or seven months each winter. Scientists have recorded very low electrical conductivity and little algae, making the water unusually pure. In 1976 brown trout were introduced, followed by char and brook trout four years later, but all became stunted from lack of food. Rare marsh plants grow in a few shallow corners, including narrow-leaved cottongrass and marsh marigold. Visitors find a quiet reserve of 1,939 hectares centred on the lake. The protected area holds limestone and shale slopes covered with blue grass and cushion sedge. Alpine eryngo, sweet cicely and Austrian ribwort grow among the rocks. The wind-swept pass just 26 metres above the lake brings strong gusts that keep the water moving. There are no fish to catch and few plants to disturb the stillness, leaving only the sound of wind and distant streams.