December

Secret Places

Mooserboden Dam, Austria.

The place:

The Mooserboden Dam is located in the middle of the Hohen Tauern mountain region, which has Austria's highest peaks. The dam in the municipality of Zell am See is at an altitude of 2036 metres, and came into operation in 1955. The reservoir is contained by two sluices, and is mainly filled by water from the melting ice of the Pasterzen glacier on the Großglockner mountain. Its gigantic usable capacity of 84.9 million cubic metres is used by the Kaprun-Oberstufe power station complex to generate electricity. The dam wall is the most imposing structure in the complex: with a height of 107 metres and a length of 494 metres, it is up to 70 metres thick at the base.


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Insider's tip:

"When the weather is kind you have a panoramic view right to the peaks of the Glockner group – a fantastic vista. With a little luck you can even observe cascades of melting ice. The sheer power of the water is all around you here. You don't notice it of course, but when the reservoir is at full capacity the dam wall bends outwards by five centimetres!"


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