Lake Thun (German: Thunersee) is a lake in the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland. It is located just north of the Alps.

The lake is 17.5km long and up to 3.5km wide. The total area is 48.3 km². The maximum depth is 217m, giving the lake a volume of about 6.5 km³. The city of Thun is located on the north of the lake and gives the lake its name.

Lake Thun was created after the last ice age. Originally it was the same lake as Lake Brienz. The former lake, consisting of the two, is called Wendelsee.

The lake is located at 558 metres above sea level. The catchment area is approximately 2500 km². This large catchment area frequently causes local flooding after heavy rainfalls. This is so, because the River Aare that leaves Lake Thun has only limited capacity.

The lake is provided by water from the Lake Brienz in the south east which lies 6 metres higher up. Fishing is important enough to keep a handful professional fishers afloat. In 2001 the total catch was 53,000kg. Since 1835 there are passenger ships on the lake. The ships are operated by the local railway company BLS Lötschbergbahn. There are ten passenger ships in total.

External links

• Lake Thun Tourism Portal