Funtensee is a lake

Lake

A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...

 in the Steinernes Meer

Steinernes Meer

The Steinernes Meer is a high karst plateau in the Northern Limestone Alps. As one of the nine sub-ranges of the Berchtesgaden Alps the Steinernes Meer belongs partly to Bavaria and partly to Salzburg.- Location :...

 plateau in the Nationalpark Berchtesgaden

Berchtesgaden

Berchtesgaden is a municipality in the German Bavarian Alps. It is located in the south district of Berchtesgadener Land in Bavaria, near the border with Austria, some 30 km south of Salzburg and 180 km southeast of Munich...

, Bavaria

Bavaria

Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 located on the larger of the two sinkholes of the uvala, known for record low temperatures up to 30°C (54°F) lower than the surrounding area. Its primary inflows are the Steingraben, Stuhlgraben and Rennergraben.

Location

At an elevation of 1601 m, its surface area is 3.5 ha. Its outflow toward the Schrainbach is subterranean at a location called Teufelsmühle. On its shore is the Kärlinger Haus mountain hut which is open for the summer season; in addition, there is a winter room available. The valley is surrounded by Viehkogel (2,158m), Glunkerer, (1,932m) and Stuhljoch (2,448m) which leads to the Funtenseetauern mountain (2,578m), named after the lake.

History

Earliest evidence of use of the area for grazing can be traced to ca 1604-1619. Around 1870 there is evidence of eight active Kaser (living quarters/stables) causing concerns of overgrazing. The Funtenseealm was active through 1964.

Temperature

Known as the coldest spot in Germany, the lake is the site where the country's record lowest temperature, −45.9°C (-50.6°F), was recorded on 24 December 2001. It is theorised that due to the unique situation of trapped cold air, a temperature of -55°C (-67°F) is possible. The extreme cold spot at the lake is said to result in a reverse tree line, as no trees can grow at any point below about 60m above the lake, although studies have found that it was the result of overgrazing animals. Temperatures are regularly monitored by a private weather station

Weather station

A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for observing atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include temperature, barometric pressure, humidity, wind speed, wind...

 installed by Jörg Kachelmann

Jörg Kachelmann

Jörg Andreas Kachelmann is a Swiss presenter, journalist and entrepreneur in the meteorological field.- Biography :Jörg Kachelmann spent his youth in Schaffhausen...

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Outflow

The noise of the water disappearing underground has led to local folklore and the naming of the outflowpoint Teufelsmühle (Devil's Mill or Devil's Grinder). The exact route the water takes underground has not yet been established and an extensive cave has not been ruled out but the outflow point is not accessible to humans to investigate.