Lakes & Mountains - Hintersee

Although we had stopped briefly at Cheimsee on our way south my first real experience of Bavarian lakes and mountains came when +Silvia Antlady and I walked around the lake known as Hintersee. Not the biggest of lakes by any means, but a lovely place to visit and an excellent lake to circumnavigate and soak up the scenery and colours.

We parked at the south eastern corner of the lake and stepping out of the car, this was my first proper view. Low cloud covered the mountain tops, but in some ways I felt that just added to the moody atmosphere.

A short walk along the southern shoreline from east to west offered views across the lake of a youth hostel and couple of other buildings catering to the tourist, including the Gasthaus Seeklause where we stopped for some lunch.

You may notice the Hintersee water has a definite green hue. Some of this is no doubt due to the reflected light from the surrounding tree covered mountains, but natural salts also have a colouring effect.

Hintersee water colour

I think you probably have to see the lake yourself to appreciate just how green the water appears, although this panorama may help a little.

Hintersee Panorama

I mentioned in a previous post the recent heavy rain that had fallen across parts of Germany and you can see from this normally quiet stream just how much water is draining from the higher ground into the Hintersee.

Mountain Run-off

Walking among the trees you can't help but be impressed by the number and variety of wild flowers.

From the delicacy of the blues to the depth of the purples and the variety of greens, the eye is treated to a feast of colour. No point asking me to identify the flowers because I can't.

The bee population are happy too. :)

The weather was kind to us and the rain held off during our visit, but you can see how threatening the building clouds were and indeed it did rain later in the day.

We made one more photo-stop before dropping into the Gasthaus Seeklause for a late lunch and I made use of a fellow tourist to add a little extra interest to this shot of the lake.

Enjoying the Hintersee

Lunch was another first for me; I sampled Kasnocken for the first time and thoroughly enjoyed it too.

Kasnocken

I'm not sure where the dish originates, but I've seen it described as Austria's answer to Mac & Cheese. While the meal does primarily consist of  pasta and cheese, Kasnocken has a different texture and in my opinion a depth of flavour you don't find in macaroni and cheese thanks to the addition of caramelised onions.

Thinking of visiting Berchtesgadener Land? Make sure you take time to include the Hintersee in your tour.