Lake Wolfgang and the market town of St Wolfgang on its shore are named after Saint Wolfgang of Regensburg. It stretches about 10.5 kilometers from northwest to southeast. It is divided into two parts by a peninsula, called die Enge (the Narrow), roughly in the middle of its southern shore opposite St Wolfgang.
The lake was the second stop of our Austria excursion on July 25, 2026.
The town of St. Wolfgang is about 50 km away from Salzburg, 1/3 of the distance is along the lake shore. We got there in less than an hour from Salzburg. Alpine mountains on both sides of the narrow long lake. The crystal-clear turquoise water was mesmerizing.
We had a short tour of the town before a 45 minute lake cruise.
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| Lake Wolfgang viewed near the town of St. Wolfgang |
The buildings in the town are very colorful, like in a children's cartoon movie! We stopped at the Parish and Pilgrimage Church of St. Wolfgang. Instead of going in, we walked into its yard. The windows on the wall of the yard serve as frames to beautiful pictures.
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| Parish and Pilgrimage Church of St. Wolfgang |
The lake cruise was relaxing and provided different views of the splendid beauty of Lake Wolfgang. Quite a few interesting stories about some landmarks. Mountain Schaferberg, which has a famed north cliff which is a nearly vertical, jaw-dropping limestone wall that plunges sharply toward the Mondsee and Attersee lakes below. From south, on lake Wolfgang, we could not see this cliff. There is dramatic story about a tiny islet in the lake, Butcher's island, where there is a Ox Cross.
Legend of a butcher and his ox ('Metzgerinsel'), wayside shrine 1579 and 1669:
According to legend, a farmer from Abersee drove his ox to St. Gilgen to be slaughtered. This took place on a narrow path along Lake Abersee. (Abersee was the former name of Lake Wolfgangsee). The ox suddenly shied and panicked due to falling stones. The farmer couldn't swim, but didn't want to lose his ox, which had fallen into the lake in the meantime. The farmer rushed after him and managed to grab the ox by the tail. The ox then pulled him across the entire lake to this small island. Out of joy and gratitude, he had this small wayside shrine erected.
Instead of legends, we could use our own imagination - a vertical limestone cliff, Falkensteinwand, by the lake resembles an elephant, we called it Elephant Rock!
Lake Wolfgang is an oasis for relaxation, water sports and enjoying nature at the same time. The surrounding area, e.g. Schafberg, Falkensteinwand, is great for outdoor adventure.
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| Parish and Pilgrimage Church of St. Wolfgang |
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| Schafberg - mountain peak |
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| Summer retreat of Katharina Schratt, confidante of Emperor Franz Joseph I |
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| Elephant Rock |
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| Metzgerinsel (Butcher's Island) |
