The Vlahini Lakes () is a group of six lakes, five of which are permanent, in the
Pirin
, photo=Pirin-mountains-Bansko.jpg
, photo_caption=Pirin scenery in winter
, country= Bulgaria,
, parent=
, geology= granite, gneiss, marble, limestone
, area_km2=2585
, range_coordinates =
, length_km=80 , length_orientation= north-s ...
mountain range in southwestern
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
, 1.5 km to the southwest from
Vihren
Vihren ( ) is the highest peak of Bulgaria's Pirin Mountains. Reaching , it is Bulgaria's second and the Balkans' third highest, after Musala and Mount Olympus. Although due to the karst topography Vihren is deprived of lakes and streams, a numbe ...
.
The lakes are named after the village of
Vlahi, located at a lower altitude. Other names of the lakes include Vihrenski and Eltepski lakes.
*The first and largest lake is the Big Vlahino lake, at 2,302 m. Its size is 400x245 m, with surface area of 23.4 deciares and depth of 13.4 m. The water capacity is 421,000 m³.
*Below is situated at 2,300 m the smallest lake with size of 68x50 m, area of 3 deciares, depth of 8.4 m and volume of 10,000 m³.
*The third lake is 300 m from the Big Vlahina lake at the same elevation as the second lake. It is elongated (145x100 m) but very shallow- up to 0.8 m. The water capacity is 4,400 m³.
*The fourth lake (2,291 m) is also elongated (245x56 m) and has a surface area of 10 deciares. The amount of water is only 9,000 m³.
*The fifth lake is at the highest altitude among the permanent lakes in the mountains, on the eastern slopes of Gredaro Hill.
The sixth lake is at the highest elevation and is the smallest in area among the group.
The Balkan trout (''
Salmo farioides
''Salmo farioides'', commonly known as the West Balkan trout, the Adriatic brown trout, or the Balkan brook trout, is a species of ray-finned fish found in the Balkans, including Albania, Croatia, North Macedonia, among others. It is an important ...
'') can be found in the lakes. The water pours out as Vlahina river, a tributary of the
Struma.
References
{{Reflist
Lakes of the Pirin