Kochelsee or Lake Kochel is located 70 kilometres (43.5 mi) south of Munich

Munich

Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...

 on the edge of the Bavarian Alps

Alps

The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....

. The western third of the lake lies within the borders of the town of Schlehdorf

Schlehdorf

Schlehdorf is a municipality in the district of Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen in Bavaria in Germany. Schlehdorf Abbey is located here....

, while the rest belongs to Kochel am See. The southern edge of the lake lies up against the mountains and the northern shore is bordered by bog

Bog

A bog, quagmire or mire is a wetland that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material—often mosses or, in Arctic climates, lichens....

 lands. The history of the settlement of Kochel (previously Quochcalun) begins with Birg bei Altjoch, a rock extrusion on the shore of the lake. The name Kochel is derived from the Latin cocula meaning head or cone.

The Loisach

Loisach

The Loisach is a river that flows through Tyrol, Austria and Bavaria, Germany. Its name is Celtic in origin, from Proto-Celtic *lawo and *iskā, both of which mean "water."...

 flows into the lake at Schlehdorf and flows out at Kochel am See. A similar amount of water flows in to the lake from the Isar

Isar

The Isar is a river in Tyrol, Austria and Bavaria, Germany. Its source is in the Karwendel range of the Alps in Tyrol; it enters Germany near Mittenwald, and flows through Bad Tölz, Munich, and Landshut before reaching the Danube near Deggendorf. At 295 km in length, it is the fourth largest river...

 through the Lake Walchen Power Plant

Lake Walchen Power Plant

The Walchensee Power Plant is a high pressure storage power station in Bavaria. With an installed output of 124 MW it is today one the largest of its kind in Germany...

.

Origin

The lake was created during the last glacial period of the current ice age by the Loisach-Isar glacier. The bottom of the glacier scraped out the lakebed. The basin then filled with water at the end of the glacial period. The northern end of the lake silted up forming bogs.

Settlements

The following settlements border the lake:

• Kochel am See
• Raut (part of Schlehdorf)
• Schlehdorf
• Altjoch (part of Kochel am See)

All are part of the district Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen

Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen

Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen is a district in Bavaria, Germany. It is bounded by Austria and the districts of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Weilheim-Schongau, Starnberg, Munich and Miesbach.- History :...

.