Excursion to Lake Salza Reservoir

Right behind the hotel lies the Salza Reservoir, a five-kilometre-long artificial lake.

If you look at it on Google Maps, you could almost mistake it for a river – it’s so long and narrow.

Since it was only about a five-minute walk from the hotel to the lake, I visited it very often.

Sometimes I just walked to the boat dock, where you could rent pedal boats, rowboats, kayaks, and stand-up paddle boards. You could also sit by the shore and enjoy a cold drink – definitely a very relaxing spot.

On other occasions, I strolled along the lakeshore. About one kilometre of the lakeside road is still accessible by car, but then the road is closed off and can only be travelled by bike or on foot.

Shortly after the road closure, there’s a bridge offering a magnificent view of the lake.

Boats bobbed on the water, and now and then a swimmer dared to take a dip in the cool water – it was always a very romantic sight.

From the lakeside road itself, you can’t see much of the lake, as the banks are densely lined with trees.

When Gerhard came to visit that weekend, we decided to rent a pedal boat and explore the lake in detail.

It was a very hot day when we set off for the lake.

We quickly got a boat and off we went.

First, we headed for the bridge I had already explored from the shore.

Then we paddled further out onto the lake, through many bends and several kilometres.

At first, the banks were densely overgrown with trees and bushes.

Later, the cliffs rose ever higher and more dramatically along the shore.

After about 45 minutes, we finally reached the Salza Fall, a waterfall that plunges spectacularly into the depths just before the dam wall.

We took a short break there, took photos of the dam and waterfall from different angles, and enjoyed the gorgeous weather.

Then it was time to head back – but the return journey was much more strenuous. The headwind was strong, the current powerful, and the sun still blazed down from the sky.

With each passing kilometre, we felt our exhaustion more acutely.

The landscape, however, was enchanting – the evening sun bathed the lake and its shores in warm hues.

At every bend, we thought we must surely be able to see the boat dock again – but no. The lake seemed to stretch on endlessly.

After nearly an hour and a half, we finally made it – we were back on shore.

Tired and happy, we returned to the hotel and let the day end in comfort.