“Lost Lake” seems an odd name. Yet, here we are at Versunkener See. This small pond offers a surprising story.
The Weißer See, or White Lake, is nearby. It lends its name to the Weißensee district. This district is in the Pankow borough of Berlin. Weißer See is Berlin’s seventh deepest lake. It reaches a maximum depth of 10.64 meters.
The Weißer See offers many leisure activities. There is a lido. Here visitors can sunbathe and enjoy drinks. A traditional café-restaurant invites lingering. One can enjoy coffee and cake. Boat rentals are available. There is even an animal enclosure and a park.
In winter, brave souls venture onto the frozen Weißer See. They go ice skating. Swimming is restricted to the lido area. It is forbidden on the remaining banks.
The lake developed after the Vistula ice age. In the mid-19th century, they laid out the park around the lake. The Weißer See lido and the café have existed since 1920.
The Weißer See has a surface area of 8.3011 hectares. Its volume totals 360,606 cubic meters. The average depth is 4.34 meters. The lake is roughly 300 meters east-west. It is about 350 meters north-south.
The Weichsel ice age shaped the lake and surrounding area. It sits in the ground moraines of Niederbarnimer. A huge block of ice remained during the melting. It thawed and created a kettle hole. This formed today’s Weisser See.
Settlements developed around the lake over centuries. They mainly based on agriculture. The oldest known settlement dates from the 13th century.
The water balance has been increasingly disturbed. This has happened through near-shore development.
The Strandbad Weissensee dates back to 1912. It reminds us of the Sterneckerschen establishment. This was Weissensee Castle. The Weisser See also functions as a storm sewer overflow. The Berlin water company regulates the water level.
During low rainfall, they pump water into the lake. This comes from nearby sources. The Pankow district pays for the pumping. This limits the additional water supply.
A center fountain stands in the Weisser See. The Young Pioneers Diving Club helps put it into operation each year.
The Weissensee Park surrounds the lake. A boat rental station sits on the banks. So does the historic Milchhäuschen. This small milk house was a well-known café in GDR days.
Buses and trams serve Weißen See. The BVG is Berlin’s main transport company. Tram line M4 runs here. It goes towards Falkenberg or Zingster Straße and S Hackescher Markt. Bus 255 goes towards Schwarzelfenweg and U Osloer Straße. Bus 259 runs towards Aubertstraße and Stadion Buschallee/Hansastraße.
So, while Versunkener See may be a small pond, the nearby Weißer See offers much more. It is a place for recreation, history, and community.