Lake Fontana Bianca

After the village of Santa Geltrude in the rear Val d'Ultimo valley, a 6 km long road proceeds into the Flatschberg Valley until Lake Fontana Bianca - "Weissbrunnsee" in German, "Lago di Fontana Bianca" in Italian - where the road ends. The lake is already situated in the Stelvio National Park and therefore a popular starting point for tours on the surrounding mountains and hikes in the eastern part of the national park. From here also the Malga dei Pini Hut and the Fisher Lake are accessible in a 1.5-hour walk wich is suitable for families. Also the mountain hike on the 2,470 m high Monte Chiodo starts at Lake Fontana Bianca. The feeder of the reservoir is the Valsura river which flows through the whole valley and runs finally into the Adige river near Lana. The hydro of Lake Fontana Bianca was built between 1957 and 1962 by the SEL-Hydropower company, the Lower Fontana Bianca mountain hut was engulfed in the floods then.

Already during the building of the dam wall, the La Genziana tavern at the lake was famous. Giancarlo Godio, a cook from Piedmont and later his son-in-law, combined the best from the Val d'Ultimo and the Italian cuisines. Guests from everywhere were flown in by helicopter. Another one, a mountain tavern at the lake, was called "Zur Knödlmoidl" - today, both restaurants are closed. Together with the other reservoirs of the valley, Lake Fontana Bianca supplies 84,500 families with electricity today. The lake is also popular among fishermen - rainbow trouts, river trouts, brook trouts and brown trouts live in the water. In winter, however, the lake and its immediate surrounding turn into a popular destination for ski tourers and snow-shoe hikers.

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Altitude: 1,872 m a.s.l.
Surface: 16 hectares
Depth: max. 18 m
Category: reservoir, mountain lake

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