| Lake Brienz | |
|---|---|
| Brienzersee (German) | |
.jpg) Aerial view of Lake Brienz from the southwest | |
  Lake Brienz  Lake Brienz  Lake Brienz | |
| Location | Bernese Highlands,canton of Bern |
| Coordinates | 46°43′N7°58′E / 46.717°N 7.967°E /46.717; 7.967 |
| Primary inflows | Aare,Lütschine,Giessbach |
| Primary outflows | Aare |
| Catchment area | 1,127 km2 (435 sq mi) |
| Basin countries | Switzerland |
| Max. length | 14 km (8.7 mi) |
| Max. width | 2.8 km (1.7 mi) |
| Surface area | 29.8 km2 (11.5 sq mi) |
| Average depth | 173 m (568 ft) |
| Max. depth | 260 m (850 ft) |
| Water volume | 5.17 km3 (4,190,000 acre⋅ft) |
| Residence time | 2.69 years |
| Surface elevation | 564 m (1,850 ft) |
| Islands | Schnäggeninseli (islet) |
| Settlements | Bönigen,Brienz,Iseltwald,Niederried,Oberried,Ringgenberg |
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Lake Brienz (German:Brienzersee) is alake just north of theAlps, in thecanton of Bern inSwitzerland. It has a length of about 14 kilometres (8.7 mi), a width of 2.8 kilometres (1.7 mi) and a maximum depth of 260 metres (850 ft). Its area is 29.8 square kilometres (11.5 sq mi); the surface is 564 metres (1,850 ft) above the sea-level. It is fed, among others, by the upper reaches of theAare at its eastern end, theGiessbach at its southern shore from steep, forested and rocky hills of the highFaulhorn andSchwarzhoren more than 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) above the lake, as well as by both headwaters of theLütschine, theSchwarze Lütschine (Black Lütschine) flowing fromGrindelwald, and theWeisse Lütschine (White Lütschine) from theLauterbrunnen Valley, at its southwestern corner. Not far north from Lütschine's inflow, the lake drains into a further stretch of the Aare at its western end.[1][2] The culminating point of the lake's drainage basin is theFinsteraarhorn at 4,274 metres above sea level.[3]
The village ofBrienz, from which the lake takes its name, lies on the northern shore to its eastern end. In the west, the lake is terminated by theBödeli, a tongue of land that separates it from neighbouringLake Thun. The village ofBönigen occupies the lake frontage of the Bödeli, whilst the larger resort town ofInterlaken lies on the reach of the Aare between the two lakes. The village ofIseltwald lies on the south shore, whilst the villages ofRinggenberg,Niederried andOberried are on the north shore.[3][1][2]
The lake is poor in nutrients, and thus fishing is not very important. Nevertheless, in 2001 10,000 kg of fish were caught.[citation needed]
There have been passenger ships on the lake since 1839, and currently there are five passenger ships on the lake. The ships are operated byBLS AG, the local railway company, and linkInterlaken Ost railway station, which they access using a 1.3-kilometre (0.81 mi) long navigable stretch of the Aare, with Brienz and other lakeside settlements. The ships also connect to theGiessbachbahn, afunicular which climbs up to the famousGiessbach Falls.[4][5]
TheBrünig railway line follows the northern shore of the lake, along with a local road, whilst theA8 motorway adopts an alternative and mostly tunnelled route above the southern shore.[3]
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Coolidge, William Augustus Brevoort (1911). "Brienz, Lake of".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 4 (11th ed.). p. 562–563.
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