Werbellinsee is a lake

Lake

A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...

 in the Barnim

Barnim

Barnim is a district in Brandenburg, Germany. It is bounded by Poland, the district of Märkisch-Oderland, the city state of Berlin and the districts of Oberhavel and Uckermark.- History :...

 district of Brandenburg

Brandenburg

Brandenburg is one of the sixteen federal-states of Germany. It lies in the east of the country and is one of the new federal states that were re-created in 1990 upon the reunification of the former West Germany and East Germany. The capital is Potsdam...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. It is located south of Joachimsthal in the Schorfheide-Chorin Biosphere Reserve

Schorfheide-Chorin Biosphere Reserve

The Schorfheide-Chorin Biosphere Reserve, often shortened to Schorfheide, is a nature reserve in the German State of Brandenburg near the Polish border. The reserve was established in 1990 following the German Reunification and is under the protection of the UNESCO Man and Biosphere Reserve Programme...

. The southern shore belongs to the Schorfheide municipality. With a surface area of 7.82 square kilometres (3 sq mi) it is the fourth largest lake in Brandenburg and with 51 metres (167.3 ft) the second deepest (after Lake Stechlin

Großer Stechlinsee

Großer Stechlinsee or Lake Stechlin is a lake in Landkreis Oberhavel, Brandenburg, Germany. At an elevation of 60 m, its surface area is 4.52 km². The Stechlin cisco, a dwarfed fish, is found only in this lake...

).

Overview

Werbellinsee became famous for the Hubertusstock hunting lodge on its western shore, originally built in 1849, later the resort of East German leader Erich Honecker

Erich Honecker

Erich Honecker was a German communist politician who led the German Democratic Republic as General Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party from 1971 until 1989, serving as Head of State as well from Willi Stoph's relinquishment of that post in 1976....

, where he received several official guests, among them West German

West Germany

West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....

 Chancellor Helmut Schmidt

Helmut Schmidt

Helmut Heinrich Waldemar Schmidt is a German Social Democratic politician who served as Chancellor of West Germany from 1974 to 1982. Prior to becoming chancellor, he had served as Minister of Defence and Minister of Finance. He had also served briefly as Minister of Economics and as acting...

 in December 1981. The eastern shore near the village of Altenhof was the site of a large Young Pioneer camp

Young Pioneer camp

Young Pioneer camp was the name for the vacation or summer camp of Young Pioneers. In the 20th century these camps existed in many socialist countries, particularly in the Soviet Union....

 (Pionierrepublik Wilhelm Pieck

Wilhelm Pieck

Friedrich Wilhelm Reinhold Pieck was a German politician and a Communist. In 1949, he became the first President of the German Democratic Republic, an office abolished upon his death. He was succeeded by Walter Ulbricht, who served as Chairman of the Council of States.-Biography:Pieck was born to...

).

Today the lake is a popular destination for yachtsmen and the site of several sailing regatta

Regatta

A regatta is a series of boat races. The term typically describes racing events of rowed or sailed water craft, although some powerboat race series are also called regattas...

s. It is navigable connected with the Oder

Oder

The Oder is a river in Central Europe. It rises in the Czech Republic and flows through western Poland, later forming of the border between Poland and Germany, part of the Oder-Neisse line...

 river and the Baltic Sea

Baltic Sea

The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...

.

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