Lake Hechtsee

Lake Hechtsee is located in the district of Kufstein at the border of Austria and Germany in the Bavarian pre-Alps.

Its northern lakeside is located only a stone’s throw from Bavaria in Germany. Lake Hechtsee is fed by the Hechtbach river, rising in the valley between Lake Hechtsee and Lake Längsee, and the Kieferbach river represents its runoff. With a surface of 28 hectares and a maximum depth of 57 metres Lake Hechtsee is the biggest and deepest of the six lakes west of Kufstein: the lakes Egelsee, Längsee, Pfrillsee, Stimmersee, Thiersee and Maistaller.

For centuries the lake has been impunded by a two metre high wall, whithout which the water surface would be much lower. Today Lake Hechtsee is one of the most popular lakes for bathing, not only with the inhabitants of Kufstein. Thanks to its wonderful position at the foot of the Thierberg mountain, the lake is a perfect starting point for hikes and mountain tours. A further attraction at Lake Hechtsee is fishing. Due to the wide variety of fish in the lake, including zander, carps, doctor fish and various species of trouts, fishing in this lake might become a great and successful experience. Some hundered metres away from Lake Hechtsee there is a way station of the nostalgic Wachtl-Bahn, a narrow-gauge railroad operated by electricity, running between Kiefersfelden in Germany and Thiersee in Austria.

According to a legend, a mermaid named Hechta used to live in Lake Hechtsee. She could appear in human figure and when once upon a time she went out of the lake, she met Friedl, a young hunter. They fell in love, but he ought to never discover her real name. When a farmer’s wife related about this mermaid and he came to know her real name, he softly whispered this name into the ear of the mermaid when they met the next time. In this moment a huge wave overran the mermaid, who lost her love and Friedl, who lost his life…

Altitude: 542 m asl
Surface: 28 hectares
Maximum depth: 57 m