Orava ( sk, Oravská priehrada) is a
reservoir in northernmost
Slovakia, forming the largest lake in Slovakia (35.2 km
2).
History
It was created by the construction of a dam between 1941 and 1953 on the former two sources of the
Orava river , , pl, Orawa
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, image = OravaRiver.jpg
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, image_caption = Orava at Dolný Kubín, showing houses of Záskalie neighbourhood
, map =
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. Several former villages had to be inundated for this purpose, including Hamri, Oszada, and Usztye.
[http://lazarus.elte.hu/hun/maps/1910/arva.jpg ] Probably the best known of them was Slanica, Today, the reservoir is protected by the
Horná Orava Protected Landscape Area
Horná Orava Protected Landscape Area ( sk, Chránená krajinná oblasť Horná Orava) is one of the 14 protected landscape areas in Slovakia. It is situated in the Námestovo and Tvrdošín districts, within the Orava region.
History
The park w ...
.
The average depth of the reservoir is 15 meters.
Islands
Vtáčí ostrov
In the northeastern extension of the reservoir lies
Vtáčí ostrov ("Bird Island"), a government ornithological reservation with Protected Bird Area status. The nature reserve in and around the island is also part of the
Horná Orava Protected Landscape Area
Horná Orava Protected Landscape Area ( sk, Chránená krajinná oblasť Horná Orava) is one of the 14 protected landscape areas in Slovakia. It is situated in the Námestovo and Tvrdošín districts, within the Orava region.
History
The park w ...
.
Waterfowl species inhabiting the Bird Island reserve include herons,
great cormorants,
spoonbill
Spoonbills are a genus, ''Platalea'', of large, long-legged wading birds. The spoonbills have a global distribution, being found on every continent except Antarctica. The genus name ''Platalea'' derives from Ancient Greek and means "broad", refe ...
s and several others. The wetlands around the Orava reservoir are also regarded as some of the most important in Europe. The protection of the forests skirting the Orava Reservoir has helped prevent erosion.
Slanický ostrov
Slanický ostrov ("Slanica Island") is the largest island of the reservoir and one of the largest lake islands of any water reservoir in Slovakia. The island is mildly forested with a series of groves, and includes some of the last architectural remnants of the defunct
Oravan village of
Slanica, the birthplace of 18th century Slovak intellectual, cleric and linguist
Anton Bernolák (Antonius Bernolacius). The centrepiece of the surviving architecture is the original church of Slanica. A new building constructed after the creation of the Orava reservoir and the island is an art gallery. Slanica Island is the only island in Slovakia to house a museum of art or art gallery, with the gallery serving as its main tourist attraction, along with the preserved church.
Gallery
Orava reservoir and its shores
File:BgPN jezioro Orawskie.jpg, A bird's eye view of the ''Oravská priehrada'' reservoir (from Babia Góra National Park in Poland)
File:Oravska priehrada.JPG, The forested shores of the Orava reservoir
File:A swan in Oravská priehrada - panoramio.jpg, A swan swimming in the Orava reservoir
File:Orava reservoir 03.jpg, A small dock at the Orava Reservoir
File:NA VÝLETNEJ LODI - panoramio.jpg, The reservoir from the observation deck of a tour boat
File:Magura and Oravská priehrada lake - panoramio.jpg, Oravská Magura mountains surrounding the valleys of the Orava Reservoir
File:ORAVSKÁ MAGURA - panoramio.jpg, Oravská Magura mountains surrounding the valleys of the Orava Reservoir
Slanický ostrov
File:Slanický ostrov umenia.jpg, Slanica Island from a bird's eye view, during lower water levels in the reservoir
File:Slanický ostrov umenia, Oravská priehrada.jpg, Slanica Island seen from the shores of the reservoir
File:Panorama Slanický ostrov umenia.jpg, The panorama of Slanica Island
File:Slanica kostol.jpg, Church on Slanica island, the last surviving major building of the village of Slanica
File:KostolSlanicaBC.jpg, Tourists visiting church on Slanica island
File:Slanický ostrov umenia - pozostatok kalvárie.jpg, Remnant chapel of the Slanica village calvary
Calvary ( la, Calvariae or ) or Golgotha ( grc-gre, Γολγοθᾶ, ''Golgothâ'') was a site immediately outside Jerusalem's walls where Jesus was said to have been crucified according to the canonical Gospels. Since at least the early mediev ...
on the island
File:Slanický ostrov umenia - Pozostatok kalvárie 2.jpg, Remnant chapel of the Slanica village calvary on the island
History and construction
File:10р крон ЧССР.jpg, The construction of the Orava Dam and Orava reservoir on a 1953 Czechoslovak banknote
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orava (Reservoir)
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