Hike to the Kleiner Arbersee with Jürgen

Helpful facts

Floating islands and bog plants

The Little Arber Lake with its floating islands is a special feature of the entire Upper Bavarian Forest Nature Park. It owes its formation to the Little Arber Lake Glacier, which descended from the Great Arber into the valley during the last ice age . It was the second longest of all the Šumava glaciers. Many legends still surround the mysterious lake at the foot of the Großer and Kleiner Arber. In the 19th century, the lake was dammed up to its present size by local forest farmers to float timber. In the process, peat felts, which are lighter than water due to their peat content, were lifted from the shores of the former lake and have survived to this day as a "floating island". As their name suggests, they were originally without a firm connection to the ground and rose and fell with the fluctuations in the water level. There are three "floating" islands on the Kleiner Arbersee, of which only the island at the outlet of the lake actually floats and is constantly changing its position. Typical bog plants, such as the round-leaved sundew, narrow-leaved cotton grass, cranberry and rosemary heather, can be found on the islands and partly also on the edge of the lake. Other special features are the feverfew and snakeweed, which can only be found sporadically along the edge of the lake.