Jølstravatn 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 municipality of Jølster

Jølster

Jølster is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative centre is the village of Skei...

 in Sogn og Fjordane

Sogn og Fjordane

is a county in Norway, bordering Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, Buskerud, and Hordaland. The county administration is in the town of Hermansverk in Leikanger municipality while the largest town is Førde....

 county, Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. The lake empties its water into the 20 kilometres (12.4 mi) long Jølstra river which then flows into the Førdefjorden

Førdefjorden

Førde Fjord is a fjord in Sogn og Fjordane county in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. It passes through the municipalities of Førde, Naustdal, Askvoll, and Flora. The fjord begins at the town of Førde, at the estuary of Jølstra river, which comes from the lake Jølstravatn...

. The impressive eastern arm of Jølstravatn is called Kjøsnesfjorden, although it is not a true fjord

Fjord

Geologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.-Formation:A fjord is formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley by abrasion of the surrounding bedrock. Glacial melting is accompanied by rebound of Earth's crust as the ice...

 that is part of the sea. The villages of Skei

Skei, Sogn og Fjordane

Skei is the administrative centre of the municipality of Jølster in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The village is located at the northeastern end of the lake Jølstravatn along the highway...

, Ålhus

Ålhus

Ålhus is a small village in the municipality of Jølster in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. It is located on highway on the northern side of the lake Jølstravatnet, in a largely agricultural area. Ålhus is located west of the village of Skei and northeast of the villages of Vassenden and...

, and Vassenden

Vassenden

Vassenden is a village in the municipality of Jølster in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. It is located along the river Jølstra at the western end of the lake Jølstravatn. The population of Vassenden was 314 in 2009, and the village is about ....

are located on the shores of the lake.

The 39 square kilometres (15.1 sq mi) lake is located at an elevation of 207 metres (679.1 ft) above sea level, and the deepest point in the lake is 233 metres (764.4 ft) below the water level. The lake is about 30 kilometres (18.6 mi) long and about 1 to 1.5 km (0.621372736649807 to 0.93205910497471 ) wide. Jølstravatn is a very good fishing lake.