Lauerz Lake

Geschichte

Lake Lauerz is a lake in the Canton of Schwyz, Switzerland. It has a water area that varies between 310ha and 360ha, a maximum depth of 14m, and a water level elevation above sea level of 447m.The lake's water area is divided between the municipalities of Lauerz, Schwyz and Steinen. There are two small islands in the lake, Schwanau and Roggenburg, both of which are in the municipality of Lauerz. The villages of Lauerz, on the southern side of the lake and in its eponymous municipality, and Seewen, at the eastern end of the lake in the municipality of Schwyz, lie on or close to the shore of the lake.The lake's principal inflow is the Steiner Aa, which flows into the north shore of the lake having passed through the village of Steinen, along with a number of smaller streams. The lake's outflow is at Seewen and takes the form of the Seeweren, a 1.5km long stream. The Seeweren in turn flows into the Muota river, some 2km above that river's mouth on Lake Lucerne.The 1806 Goldau landslide impacted the lake and caused a tsunami 20m high. This caused damage to the villages of Lauerz and Seewen, and to the island of Schwanau, and partially filled up the lake. More recently, floods in 1999 and 2005 have affected lakeside properties, especially in Lauerz, and attempts have been made to control the water level by connecting Lake Lauerz through a tunnel to Lake Lucerne.