Lac d'Aiguebelette is a natural

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

in the commune of Aiguebelette-le-Lac, within the department of

Savoie Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè'' or ''Savouè-d'Avâl''; English: ''Savoy'' ) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Southeastern France. Located in the French Alps, its prefecture is Chambéry. In 2019, Savoie had a population ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Geography

Description

With a surface area of 5.45 km² and a depth of 71 meters it is one of the largest natural lakes of France. It is noted for its blue-green colour and the seven hot water springs. The communities of

Novalaise Novalaise (; frp, Novalaze) is a commune in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. Geography Climate Novalaise has a oceanic climate ( Köppen climate classification ''Cfb''). The average annual temp ...

, Lépin-le-Lac,

Saint-Alban-de-Montbel Saint-Alban-de-Montbel () is a commune in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. World heritage site It is home to one or more prehistoric pile-dwelling (or stilt house) settlements that are part of t ...

and Aiguebelette-le-Lac border west side of the lake, whilst the

Chaîne de l'Épine The Chaîne de l'Épine, in the department of Savoie in southeast France, is a long ridge of the Jura Mountains that runs north–south along the east side of the Lac d'Aiguebelette, from the Col de l'Épine west of Chambéry as far as the ...

ridge lies to the east with its high point at Mont Grêle (). At the southern end there are two islands, ''La Petite Ile'' and ''La Grande Ile'' which has a chapel.

Climate

Lake Aiguebelette has a

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

''Cfb'') closely bordering on a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

(''Cfa''). The average annual temperature in Lake Aiguebelette is . The average annual rainfall is with May as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around , and lowest in January, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Lake Aiguebelette was on 24 July 2019; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 20 December 2009.

Recreation

The

ridge is crossed by hiking trails, and

paragliders Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched Glider (aircraft), glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a :wikt:harness, harness o ...

launch from there during the summer. Motorboats are not allowed on the lake to preserve the silence and wildlife along the lake. There are noted views of the lake from the church at St. Alban de Montbel and the mountain ridges.

Rowing

The lake hosted the

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...

and

2015 World Rowing Championships The 2015 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 30 August to 6 September 2015 at Lac d'Aiguebelette, Aiguebelette in France. Description The annual week-long rowing regatta was organized by FISA (the ...

.WorldRowing, News. FISA announces selection for the 2015 world rowing championships
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References

External links

Lac Aiguebelette website
Aiguebelette Rowing venues Aiguebelette {{Savoie-geo-stub