Außenalster () or Outer Alster Lake is the larger one of two

artificial lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from t ...

s, which are formed by the

Alster The Alster () is a right tributary of the Elbe river in Northern Germany. It has its source near Henstedt-Ulzburg, Schleswig-Holstein, flows somewhat southwards through much of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg and joins the Elbe in central ...

River and are both located within the city limits of

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. The other „lake“ is the Binnenalster. The Außenalster and its shores are used by the inhabitants of Hamburg for many sport and

recreation Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for happiness, enjoyment, amusement, ...

al purposes, such as

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, Windsurfing, windsurfer, or Kitesurfing, kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (Land sa ...

and

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically a ...

Overview

History

The phrase "outer" refers to the former Wallanlagen (city walls) of Hamburg. The Außenalster was the part of the lake that was "outside" the city walls, built in 1625. In 1804 city wall and ramparts were stripped down and re-naturalized to

park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

s, but the spatial division between the two lakes was retained. Today, two car and rail bridges, the Lombardsbrücke and the Kennedybrücke, span the river at this location. The areas around the Außenalster developed slightly different on the eastern and western sides; while the western side became a wealthy suburban area around the late 18th century, much of the eastern side used to be a property of the finance department of the City of Hamburg and only developed in the later decades of the 19th century.

Geography

The Außenalster has a size of and is on average only some deep. It is fed by the rivers

, Osterbek (via Osterbekkanal) and Wandse (via Mundsburger Kanal). Other canals entering the Außenalster include Rondeelkanal, Goldbekkanal and Uhlenhorster Kanal. The lake also forms a number of smaller bays and inlets. The Alster River enters the Außenalster in the North at Krugkoppelbrücke and leaves it in the South at Kennedybrücke.

Location

Districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

bordering the Außenalster are Harvestehude and Rotherbaum on the western shore, and

Winterhude Winterhude () is a quarter in the ward Hamburg-Nord of Hamburg, Germany. As of 2020 the population was 56,382. History Winterhude was first mentioned in the 13th century, but archeological findings of tools, weapons and Tumulus, grave-mounds were ...

, Uhlenhorst, Hohenfelde and St. Georg on the eastern shore. Many of the streets around Außenalster are among the most desirable addresses in Hamburg. St. Georg, as part of Hamburg-Mitte, has a notably denser built environment; all other districts around Außenalster are primarily residential districts, with many of the villas around the lake also being used by various organizations or small professional businesses. Alsterufer and Harvestehuder Weg on the western shore include a number of consular missions, like the U.S. Consulate General. For its proximity to the

inner city The term inner city (also called the hood) has been used, especially in the United States, as a euphemism for majority-minority lower-income residential districts that often refer to rundown neighborhoods, in a downtown or city centre area. Soc ...

and its recreational qualities, the Außenalster is location of a number of

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

s: among others, five-star superior Hotel Atlantic lies near the south-eastern bay of Außenalster; another hotel of the same category is currently under construction at Fontenay on the western shore.

Festivals, recreation and sport

Festivals

Usually during May, the Japanese community in Hamburg organizes the annual ''Kirschblütenfest'' ( Cherry Blossom Festival) around Außenalster. Less regularly − that is, only when a winter becomes cold enough and the Außenalster's ice strong enough − the ''Alstereisvergnügen'' is held on the frozen Alster.

Alsterpark

Almost all banks of the Außenalster are public. Formerly private gardens on the western side were made public while Hamburg was host to the Internationale Gartenbauausstellung (International Horticulture Show, IGA) in 1953. The banks vary from a small strip of green to large

public park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...

s (e.g. the Alstervorland). The long pathway around the lake is very popular for joggers.

Water sports

Because of frequently occurring gusts, the lake is considered no easy sailing area. The Alster's water is regularly tested for quality, and considered "very clean" by German standards. Nevertheless, swimming is not recommended, because of the density of watercraft and an oftentimes shallow vision. A number of famous, long-standing sailing and rowing clubs are based around Außenalster: like

Der Hamburger und Germania Ruder Club Der Hamburger und Germania Ruder Club (DHuGRC) is a rowing club from Rotherbaum, Hamburg, Germany. It was founded in 1836 as ''Der Hamburger Ruder Club'', the club is the fourth oldest rowing club in the world (2nd if only counting non-academica ...

(est. 1836), Ruderclub Allemannia (est. 1866), Norddeutscher Regatta Verein (est. 1868) or Hamburger Segel-Club (est. 1926).

Notes

References

* Statistical office Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein ''Statistisches Amt für Hamburg und Schleswig-Holstein'' Statistisches Jahrbuch 2006/2007 (ISSN 1614-8045)

External links

Photos of Außenalster
on bilderbuch-hamburg.de
Photos of Außenalster
on bilder-hamburg.info * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aussenalster Lakes of Hamburg Artificial lakes of Germany Sports venues in Hamburg Sailing in Germany Tourist attractions in Hamburg de:Alster#Außenalster