Gruner See in Styria, Austria--Also known as Green Lake, it’s a small body of water in the midst of snow-capped karst peaks and hiking trails, but every spring the surrounding snow melts and turns it into a 30 feet deep lake that’s perfect for diving! Benches, paths, and bridges used by hikers during the winter become submerged and lend an air of adventure and mystery. While the water is around 46 degrees Fahrenheit, the emerald green pool is apparently crystal clear.

1. I
JUST
FOUND
MY
NEXT
SCUBA
DESTINATION
David
Coolidge
December
27,
2013
I
just
read
this
article
on
Slate
about
Gruner
See
in
Styria,
Austria.
Also
known
as
Green
Lake,
it’s
apparently
a
small
body
of
water
in
the
midst
of
snow-­‐capped
karst
peaks
and
hiking
trails,
but
every
spring
the
surrounding
snow
melts
and
turns
it
into
a
30
feet
deep
lake
that’s
perfect
for
diving!
Benches,
paths,
and
bridges
used
by
hikers
during
the
winter
become
submerged
and
lend
an
air
of
adventure
and
mystery.
While
the
water
is
around
46
degrees
Fahrenheit,
the
emerald
green
pool
is
apparently
crystal
clear.
The
article
doesn’t
say
what
types
of
flora
there
are,
but
Wikipedia
lists
trout,
snails,
crabs,
water
fleas,
fly
larvae
as
particularly
abundant
fauna.
And
it’s
recommended
that
you
make
the
trip
around
May
or
June,
as
that’s
when
the
water
level
is
at
its
peak
(it
usually
starts
to
recede
in
July).
I’ve
gone
skiing
in
Austria
but
never
thought
I
could
go
there
for
diving
too!
I
love
the
idea
of
a
temporary
diving
pool
in
the
middle
of
the
mountains.
Sure
it’d
be
cold,
but
it
would
definitely
be
a
unique
experience.