Lake Toplitz
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Lake Toplitz Toplitzsee |
|
|---|---|
| Location | Salzkammergut, Austria |
| Coordinates | |
| Primary outflows | Toplitz |
| Basin countries | Austria |
| Max length | 2 km |
| Max width | 400 m |
| Max depth | 103 m |
| Surface elevation | 718 m |
Lake Toplitz (German: Toplitzsee) is a lake situated in a dense mountain forest high up in the Austrian Alps, 60 miles from Salzburg city in western Austria. It is surrounded by cliffs and forests in the picturesque Salzkammergut lake district within the Totes Gebirge, or dead mountains.
It is believed that the lake carries the past misdeeds of Germany in World War II. Supposedly, the Nazis stashed vast quantities of gold and other priceless plunder, including the lost panels from Russia’s Amber Room, as well as documents detailing the whereabouts of other Third Reich caches. Millions of counterfeit pound sterling notes (100+ million) were dumped as a coverup act on this lake after a strategy called Operation Bernhard was never put into action. These rumours have lured treasure hunters into its depths, some to their death.
During the war, in the years 1943 and 1944, the shore of Lake Toplitz served as home to a Nazi naval testing station, only accessible on foot by a hazardous mile-long path. Using copper diaphragms, scientists experimented with different explosives, detonating up to 4,000 kg charges at various depths. They also fired torpedoes from a launching pad in the lake into the Tote Mountains, producing vast holes in the canyon walls.
