Funtensee

Funtensee is a small karst lake at 1,633 metres on the Steinernes Meer plateau in Berchtesgaden National Park. It lies in a limestone basin, with Kärlingerhaus just above the shore. Save it for a day when a substantial mountain hike is the point; this is a hike destination, not a quick stop. The quickest approach starts at St. Bartholomä on Königssee and climbs through the Saugasse. Other mountain routes come from Salet or from Ramsau via Wimbachgries and Trischübel.

Funtensee is known for its winter cold. The temperature reached −45.9°C here on Christmas 2001. Cold air pools in the basin, and the tree line seems to run downhill: trees shrink toward the lake and nearly disappear at the shore. Kärlingerhaus sits only metres higher and can be much warmer than the lake basin.

The lake covers about 2.5 hectares and is 5.3 metres deep at its deepest point. There is no visible stream flowing out. Instead, water drains below the limestone, and you can hear its underground outflow at the Teufelsloch, or Devil's Hole.

Kärlingerhaus stands directly above the shore, with dining rooms and 160 beds. It is a regular overnight stop on the Große Reibn hut-to-hut route. Summer swimming is possible in Funtensee. The hut follows a mountain season, so check its current opening and reserve if you are counting on a meal or a bed.

Alpine farming around the lake continued into the 1960s, and a Kaser, or alpine pasture hut, still stands there. A separate hut is used to distill gentian spirit from roots dug by hand nearby. On the last weekend of August, the lake is the final rest stop for as many as 3,000 pilgrims crossing the Steinernes Meer on the Almer Wallfahrt, before they descend the Saugasse toward Königssee.

For a photo, include the lake, the huts above its shore and some of the limestone skyline. That wider view shows how the small lake sits inside its bowl; a close shot of water alone loses the setting that makes Funtensee distinctive.