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General Information on
Lake Balaton:
With a surface area of almost 600 sq. km, Balaton is the biggest
lake in central Europe. Its shallowness means it warms quickly
and for 6 months of the year is a magnet to bathers. It is 77.8
km long and between 3 and 12.5 km wide. Its shoreline amounts
to 195 km and the average depth is 3.14m. At Tihanyrév,
the site of the North-South passenger and car ferry, the average
depth is 3 m. Off Tihany, however, the lake is 12.2 m deep.
Although a sea once rolled over the area Balaton now occupies,
the lake is not a remnant of it but relatively young at around
ten thousand years. Precipitation filled a once much larger
geological depression.
In comparison with many European lakes, the water of Balaton
is very clean and rule number one is thus to protect it against
the numerous perils of modern civilisation. The strict Clean
Water regulations - e.g. motor boaters must betake themselves
to other waters - are appreciated by sailors, numerous sailboarders
and obviously bathers.
The water is often described as silky, or at any rate that is
the sensation the skin conveys. This is not an illusion: the
water is slightly alkaline and gentle - because of the fineness
of its suspended matter and mineral particles it could as well
be described as heavily diluted mineral water. The therapeutic
sunbathing in the sun's rich rays, the microclimate and the
non-salty but mineral rich water make bathing as enjoyable as
in the sea - often from as early as May through to early autumn
in October.
However, Balaton is not simply a giant 'beach pool' but rather
a living expanse of water. Its fish fall to the broad nets of
the fisher folk in their small boats and to the rods of locals
and visitors waiting patiently on piers or built-up sections
of the shore. This wealth of fish is also, incidentally, provided
for 'artificially'. Baby fish are released into the lake every
year.
When speaking of Balaton, mention must be made of its fish dishes.
The most popular fish is the 'whitefish' or bream, a slender
type of carp that is rolled in paprika-favoured flour and then
baked. It can be eaten bones and all without hesitation. Next
in popularity after the whitefish is the 'fogas', a predatory
fish that can turn the scales at up to 10 kg. Smaller specimens
of up to 1.5 kg are known as pikeperch, bigger ones as fogas.
With its tender flesh this non-bony fish is comparable in taste
with trout and is generally baked whole no matter how big it
is. The whitefish is sold on fish stands on the beach while
the fogas or pikeperch is served as a delicacy in posh restaurants.
Hungary has a temperate climate, with alternating maritime and
continental influences. In the southern part of the country
and in particular around Balaton the Mediterranean influence
prevails. Many plants and trees that can otherwise only be found
in Mediterranean countries thrive in this pleasant climate.
For example, on the south-facing slopes of the northern shore,
almonds grow, figs ripen in many gardens and pomegranates frequently
gleam through the foliage
Within two decades, the population of the Balaton region has
risen from 100,000 to almost 150,000 but in summer at least
twice as many stay by the lake. Hence some shops and restaurants
only open in the holiday season and in summer an increasing
number of food shops are open on Sundays as well.
On the south side the railways run close to the shore, while
on the north shore they take a loop around the Tihany peninsula
and Badacsony Hills to return to the proximity of the lakeshore
at Tapolca.
A dense bus route network connects everywhere on Balaton . Foreign
visitors arriving with their own cars generally use the M7 motorway
from Budapest - a convenient link between the capital and the
lake.
Coming from Vienna you do not merely save time and petrol by
crossing Transdanubia via Sopron-Sarvar on Highway 84 or taking
Highway 83 to Papa und Veszprem or Highway 82 to Varpalota at
Györ - these routes also run through beautiful landscapes.
There are also highways to Balaton from Graz, Zagreb and Belgrade
on which you can avoid the heavy though- traffic to Western
Europe and the Balkans. They have more than their fair share
of natural beauty: attractive towns, interesting architectural
memorials, pleasant staging points, little inns and homely pensions.
Balaton (Cruise report from
YACHT No. 5/1999)
Hungary's big lake is almost like a small sea.
With temperatures similar to the Caribbean, clean harbours and
moderate prices, surrounded by famous vineyards, Hungary's big
lake is almost like a small sea. Off Badacsony a light onshore
breeze hastens a classic on its way. Then it's out of the harbour
and set sail. The jetty at Szigliget offers scarcely any shelter.
One should only lie here in westerly to northwesterly winds.
The thermometer on the clubhouse of the Balatonfüred yacht
harbour shows 34 in the shade. Over it there arches a brilliant
blue sky. Only a few small scraps of cloud in the west provide
any hope of wind. In any case Swimming trunks and bikinis are
social dress in the club restaurant, on the pier and onboard.
Beside the bar a jazz band is playing; the mood is relaxed. Yacht
charterer Peter Fekete has handed a brand new Hungarian Top 34
over to us. The chart of Balaton shows not only depth contours
and important nautical information but also vineyards and wine
cellars. As we start the engine, Peter casts off the warps and
calls after us: "The most beautiful part of Hungary is the
Badacsony vineyard. Ask for Elisabeth's Cellar. There is a special
wine there, the 'Grey Monk'." We pass through the narrow
harbour entrance busy with traffic. From Beach Cats to 13-Metre
Yachts - many boats are going in and out under sail as if in slow
motion, and even right into their berths. What is more, the fingers
are closer together than in most German marinas.
Immediately off the pier-heads I stop the engine for I know from
my first Balaton cruise almost twenty years ago that engines are
prohibited. Nevertheless, we want to see as many facets as possible
of the Hungarian inland sea within a week's charter. It is just
a pity that there is no more than a light breeze rippling the
mirror smooth turquoise water. Our goal for the day is to the
west, the Tihany peninsular - now only four kilometres away. On
its crag the most photographed church in Hungary stands in solitary
splendour at a height of 219 metres. Since we are making less
than one knot under sail, we follow the example of Hungarian crews,
letting down the bathing ladder, jumping from the pulpit into
the almost bathtub-warm wetness and climbing back onboard aft.
Showering off is not necessary because the water is not only clean
but also fresh.
We run towards Tihany with the wind aft thankful for every breath
that puts any shape into the sails. Tihany hill on whose eastern
slope white villas nestle in parkland is a desirable residence
for locals and holidaymakers. We steer for the Mahart Ferry Company's
harbour where there is a jetty for a dozen yachts next to the
pier for passenger ferries. Like the neighbouring boats we make
fast bow-on with a stern anchor.
A stroll up to the village affords impressive views over the Hungarian
Sea. At the top of the bluff a visit to the abbey is a must. It
is one of the oldest churches in Hungary. At the beginning of
the 11th century, the Magyars occupied the lands around Balaton.
In 1055 King Endre I had the church and a Benedictine monastery
built. These are the oldest buildings on Balaton. A mediaeval
village clusters around the ecclesiastical buildings. Outside
their thatched houses the Hungarians have pottery, plaits of paprika
and wine of their own making for sale. Between them, small taverns
serving wine tempt you to sample the juice of the grape straight
from the barrel. "Tihany is most beautiful place in the world
", an old man whose barrel we failed to walk past tells us
in heavily accented German. If one agrees in advance that Hungary
is the most beautiful country in the world, he may well be right.
We sit in the open on wooden benches and enjoy cool riesling and
the view over the lake.
That evening we lie in the Tihany Yacht Marina. This small harbour
offers the comforts of a modern marina. As in Balatonfüred
everything is clean and well cared for but considerably more peaceful.
Many boats are long-term residents from Budapest, Southern Germany
or Austria. We pay the fixed-rate berthing fee of 1500 forints
- about 6.1 Euro or 300 forints per person. Opposite the marina
I ask at a guest house by the name of 'Tihany Gyönygye Villa',
which is the best restaurant in Tihany and where it is possible
to order a taxi for the trip up to it. Instead of giving an answer,
Andras, the proprietor of the guest house considers briefly and
in three minutes drives us up the winding road to the 'Ziprian',
a restaurant with a covered central courtyard. Our driver does
not want any money. Instead he invites us to breakfast at his
guest house.
At the Ziprian we order a Balaton fish platter for three, salad
and the trimmings. Bream, pike and pikeperch are superbly prepared
and the portions so generous that we cannot manage them. In the
end we pay 4300 forints including three pitchers of riesling,
about 17.5 Euro. Next day we set sail after a plentiful breakfast
at the Gyönygye-Villa. We pass through the narrows at Tihany
- only 1200 metres wide - under a morning offshore breeze. Car
ferries run to and fro. But then it as if the wind had been turned
off. In water with a temperature of 26 degrees, we swim faster
than the boat sails. And our objective for the day, the Badacsony
vineyard, is 30 kilometres to the west. It cannot even be made
out in the haze. If we continue to bob up and down in the calm,
it will take a week to get to the most famous vineyard in the
country. We have an inboard diesel - should we start it illegally?
In 1979 the prohibition on engines was administered strictly,
but as two yachts approach under power we fire up the diesel,
furl the genoa and leave the main up as an alibi. The police on
the lake show no interest in us.
At 10 pm we enter the harbour below the vineyard in the failing
light. We get a berth on the visitors' jetty, once again mooring
bow-to with a stern anchor, but for a cool 4000 forints, although
this harbour also belongs to Mahart. In the clubhouse there are
a bar, a chandlery, the harbour master's office and sanitary facilities.
The shock: the toilets and showers are primitive, cramped and
still redolent of the charms of socialism. The sole reason for
staying in the marina is the Badacsony vineyard. Grapes are said
to have been planted here as far back as Roman times. Past the
wine cellars with their invitations in German to taste their wares,
we climb our way to the 'Róza-Szegedy House', a traditional
Baroque house with an arcade, and on to Elisabeth's Cellar. Outside
the little stone house vines intertwine above a crushed lime terrace.
In the shadow of the vine-leaves there stand old wooden tables
and benches on which the generations of happy topers have carved
their names. Through the house you come to the low cellars, full
of old wooden barrels. An old Hungarian toasts us in golden-yellow
wine and pours it into stoneware pitchers. "Elisabeth was
my mother ", says the vintner. She is long-since dead, "But
I make the Grey Monk exactly as she did." He fills each of
us a stoneware mug as a taster. The delightful Grey Monk, which
here ripens on a hot basalt soil and is vinified locally, tickles
the tonsils. "The name comes down from the middle ages",
the vintner explains. "In those days they had sent us a monk
from Vienna to instruct us in the faith. The solitary monk loved
the pleasures of the flesh. After drinking the night through he
is said to have appeared completely grey. Since then the wine
has borne his name." The higher the sun rises above Balaton,
the busier it becomes outside Elisabeth's Cellar. There are Saxons,
Thuringians and Bavarians who have known the place for years and
are already lapsing into joyful song. Elisabeth's son has to fetch
pitcher after pitcher from the cellars. His price for a litre
is 200 forints (0.70 Euro). To go with it there is home-baked
black bread - a rare delicacy in Hungary. Warm from the oven,
the slices are spread with dripping and sprinkled with hot, coarsely
chopped paprika.
Our cruise along the northern shore of Balaton leads inevitably
to more vineyards. We sail six kilometres westward to Szigliget.
This open finger pier too is a jetty for Mahart vessels. Yachts
are allowed to berth on the eastern side, either bow or stern
on to the pier. Nobody comes to collect the money. The toilets
and water supply on the passenger quay can be used. It is only
in an easterly that I would not like to lie here. After a 20-minute
hike past pretty detached houses and small guest houses we reach
the biggest wine cellar in Hungary. Szigliget's 120 metre long
vault houses a wine museum and a 40 metre long table for guests
set between metre-high barrels. A rustic supper of sausage, salt
pork, garlic and paprika is served. When he eats, every guest
can decide on the barrel he would like his juice of the grape
drawn from.
A whistling in the shrouds and an uncomfortable motion awaken
us next morning. The wind has freshened, fortunately from the
northwest. At Szigliget Pier our boat is moving with the seaway.
We let go the makefasts and recover the stern anchor. We sail
eastwards towards Bráhamhegy in the lee of the vineyards.
It is only nine kilometres there and we have a stern wind. It
is blowing Force 4 to 5 and reminds one that Balaton can sometimes
also be somewhat umpety. The visibility has deteriorated to the
extent that the southern shore with its bathing resorts and summer
mass tourism can no longer be made out. However, we find Bráhamhegy
safely. The new marina is protected in all winds; it is simply
that some pontoons are still missing. Our boat is too beamy for
the few vacant finger berths; we go alongside a lighter. The harbour
master at Bráhamhegy is a somewhat odd old man whom we
christen Father Abraham. He lives with his dog in a site caravan
by the entry gate and explains that the sanitary facilities are
not yet finished. We should go to the open-air swimming pool next
door for a shower. When we return, hair wet, Father Abraham whispers:
"Today is Wednesday so you must go to the 'Rizapuszta', an
hour from here up in the mountains. On Wednesdays there is a wine
tasting and the most beautiful of the gypsy women will be dancing
for you." What a prospect ... When we took our leave from
Cellar Master Bartók, a 60-year old Hungarian with a heavy
moustache, felt hat and Viennese dialect, it was long since dark.
Tomorrow it will be time to start the trip back.
Bodo Müller
Bottom and ground conditions:
It is characteristic of the formation of the bottom of Balaton
that the depth reaches 2.5 - 3 m close along the north shore
and that this depth increases slowly and steadily toward the
south-east. This slow change in the depth of the bottom extends
up to the southern shoreline. Here it comes up against the
'ridges' which follow the shallow, gently shelving southern
shoreline at a distance of 300 to 1000 m. The ridges are covered
by water and are located between 40 and 60 m apart. Between
them there are trenches with a relative depth of 60 to 120
cm. The southern shore is fringed by between 4 and 6 such
ridges. The point where deep water encounters the first of
them is known by Balaton's navigators and fishermen as the
ledges. Off the northern shore such a bottom formation is
unknown. In heavy weather when the depth of water cannot,
as it were, be measured, the seas reveal the beginning of
the dangerous shoals. The waves break along the line of the
Cutters and the series of foaming seas indicates to some extent
the limit of navigable depths.Along the northern shore, there are not inconsiderable
cones of debris built up by the inflowing streams. These are
clearly visible, even several hundred metres from the shore.
Hydrographic
Features
The level of water in the lake is determined by the amount
of precipitation falling on its catchment area, evaporation
and water level control by the Sió sluices in Siófok.
The lake's catchment area amounts to 5,774.5 km2. On this
vast area there falls an average of 3,176 million m³
of precipitation a year of which roughly 930 to 1000 million
m³ end up in the lake. The water area receives an annual
average precipitation of approximately 370 million m³.
The streams feeding the lake and the River Zala between them
contribute a water supply of approximately 17 m³/s to
the maintenance of the level. The volume of water at a height
of 104.84 m above sea level ( Adriatic ) - corresponding to
the mean level of 75 cm -approaches 2 km³. On summer
days this huge expanse of water evaporates vigorously and
the fall in the water level caused by evaporation can be in
the order of several centimetres.
Characteristic
Water Movements
The varied water movements are influenced by the large expanse
of the lake, the formation of the terrain of the surrounding
area, the dissimilarity and frequency of wind directions and
strengths together with the subdivision of the surface of
the lake into bays. The three typical water movements in which
large volumes of water are involved are waves, surface drift
resulting in oscillations and currents.
Sea state
On water surfaces exposed to the effects of the wind, ripples
arise with a height of between 0.5 and 3 cm depending on the
wind strength ( the surface is ruffled ) and are caught by
the wind. The occurrence of this process is promoted by the
shallow depth of the lake. The body of water is heated to
some slight extent by the influence of the sun. This relatively
warm water is easily set in motion thereby giving rise to
waves.
Winds blowing in a direction at right angles to the long
axis of the lake generally exhibit a gradual increase in wind
strength and have a markedly intermittent effect. The fact
that the valleys on the north shore run in the direction of
these winds plays a considerable part in this. The fetch off
these valleys, which to a large extent influences the development
and intensity of the seas, increases proportionately in those
areas that fall within the wind shadow effect of the mountains.
In a seaway, the various wave motions play an important role.
Peak wave height values have in almost all cases occurred
during a brief, sudden lull. Because of the obstructions on
the shore, the wind fluctuates greatly and hence high waves
and short wave-free intervals follow one another in succession.
The period of individual waves varies and their forms are
very diverse. The waves reflected back off the bottom in the
shallows off the shore are subject to an interference effect.
When waves of different periods and forms run together in
a sudden lull lasting a few minutes and the reflection from
the bed of the lake occurs at the appropriate moment, especially
high waves arise under the combined effect of these phenomena.
Depending on such diverse effects of the factors affecting
the sea state, short wave fronts of various forms develop.
No clear-cut typical periodic interval can be determined for
the seas on the lake.
In the proximity of the shore the biggest wave to date with
a height of 1.82 m was measured in a northerly wind. This
exceptionally high wave occurred when a gust of 21.1 m/s (41.0
knots) was followed by a brief lull of 10 m/s (19.4 knots).
In the middle of the lake the biggest wave of 1.95 m was observed
in a northerly wind of average velocity 11.8 m/s (22.9 knots).
The gust reached 19.5 m/s (37.9 knots) after which a relative
calm occurred. At the same time a wave height of only 1.4
m was measured in the proximity of the shore.
The average height of the seas caused by the wind is 100
to 130 cm, with wave lengths ranging between 2 and 12 m. The
maximum wave heights occur in N-NW winds whose effect is at
right angles to the long axis of the lake. In sudden, rapidly
strengthening winds truly massive, high waves spring up but
within 1 ½ to 2 hours of the wind ceasing, the sea
also dies down.
In winds that increase slowly and gradually, the seas comes
up and grow parallel to the wind direction. The resulting
wave heights are then generally less than average and the
seas also die down gradually on a decrease in wind speed.
Surface drift - Oscillations
Under the influence of the wind, the water in the lake
moves in the wind direction resulting in a considerable drop
in the water level. Depending on the wind direction the water
level then falls on one shore and rises on the other. From
the practical point of view surface drift must be taken into
account in the immediate estimation of the navigability of
individual harbours and channels as well as in grounding and
floating off and when vessels are to be intentionally laid
up.
The greatest longitudinal oscillation is generated by WNW
and ENE winds, which exhibit the same direction as the long
axis of the lake. Depending on the wind direction and speed
and the topographical features of the lake, the period of
the resulting longitudinal oscillations ranges from 5.5 to
11 hours. In addition, the transverse oscillations and the
oscillations of the various bays in the lake's shore have
a considerable effect on the longitudinal oscillations. As
a result of water oscillations, a substantial difference in
water level can arise between two widely separated points
on Balaton. In the largest observed fluctuation on 14 May
1962, a fall of 45 cm occurred at Keszthely in nine hours
at the same time as a rise of 52.5 cm at Alsóörs.
The greatest simultaneous difference in water level amounted
to 80 cm at which time the speed of the longitudinal wind
was 20 m/s (39 knots).
Transverse fluctuations are most significant in the southwestern
basin between Alsóörs and Siófok. In terms
of size, that at the latter is the bigger and arises under
the influence of the prevailing NNW wind as a result of the
relatively great width and depth. The greatest fluctuation
in level measured to date was 52.5 cm at Alsóörs
and 37.5 cm at Siófok. At Siófok the oscillation
lasts for approximately 1.5 hours.
Currents
As a result of surface drift and water oscillation, currents
of various magnitudes and directions occur in the body of
the water of the lake. On the surface the water flows in the
direction of the wind, close to the bottom against the wind
because of the Earth's gravity as the surface strives to attain
equilibrium. Significant currents determined by the various
oscillations arise between the two basins and within the basins
themselves. The strongest current may be observed in the area
between the Tihany Penninsula and the Szantód shore
where water is exchanged through the confined passage between
the north-east and south-west basins. High stream rates occur
at this point, in isolated cases reaching rates of 1.4 to
2 m/s ( 2.8 to 4 knots ). In general the stream toward Keszthely
runs less strongly than that toward Balatonkenese but persists
for longer. There is a strong current off the entrance to
Kesthely Bay and throughout the bay itself. Here weaker streams
of 0.3 to 0.4 m/s ( 0.6 to 0.8 knots ) may be observed. The
inshore "circulating currents", which mainly flow
close to the bottom, come about as a consequence of the fluctuations.
Piers project into the path of these currents and, under the
influence of the eddies and slack spots occurring behind them,
harbour entrances become more or less silted up with debris.
Wind
The prevailing wind on Balaton, known by the fishermen as
the "main wind", is from between N and NW. In the
eastern basin ( between Balatonkenese and Tihany) north-westerlies
predominate with northerlies in the south-western area ( between
Tihany and Keszthely ) SE and SW winds occur more frequently
in autumn and winter. Storms are particularly dangerous to
navigation since the wind increases suddenly with hardly any
transition at all and sometimes attains a speed of 30 to 35
m/s (60 to 70 knots) within 10 to 20 minutes. The outbreak
of storms is mostly preceded by a moderate or light southerly
air stream. The wind veers to the NW accompanied by a dramatic
increase in strength. In thunderstorms - when the falling
air spreads out close to the water surface and gives rise
to violent radial winds - the wind is strongest in the direction
of the eye of the storm and more moderate on either side.
A thunderstorm can last for 2 or 3 hours. On 13 July 1961,
the strongest gust measured to date reached a speed of 36
m/s (70 knots). Such a hurricane-like wind can give rise to
an average wind pressure of 94.4 kPa (12.8 lb/ sq. ft.). April
is the windiest month on Balaton; storms (wind speeds exceeding
15 m/s or 30 knots) occur more frequently at the beginning
of the summer ( on average one can reckon on storm gusts on
one day in 3). The calmest month is September ( on average
a storm can be observed only every 10 days). In the areas
of the lake off the northern shore the wind-shadow effect
of the mountains is of such intensity as to reduce the strength
of the wind in particular instances ( e.g. between Balatonfüred
and Siófok ) by as much as 60 %. In strong N and NW
airflows strong winds from the valleys at right angles to
the lake can be observed on the surface of the water. When
the wind gets out over the lake, it fans out and its speed
exceeds the surrounding average substantially. It follows
from this that the area of the southern shore is windier than
that of the northern one, especially in the summer months.
Because of the considerable longitudinal dimension of the
lake, mutually disparate weather conditions do occur in different
areas. While calm reigns in one basin, a violent wind rages
in the other. The National Weather Service warning observatory
at Siófok deals with storm warnings for the Balaton
area and between 1 May and 30 September operates the storm
warning system. If the wind is liable attain a speed of 12
m/s (24 knots) within 3 hours, a Level I storm warning is
ordered. If the wind speed will exceed 17 m/s (34 knots) immediately
or within 1 - 2 hours, a Level II storm warning is ordered.
Yellow lights indicating the meteorological conditions are
displayed at 24 points along the shore. On the approach of
a storm a yellow light flashing 30 times a minute indicates
Level I, whereupon boats and water sports craft may only navigate
within a 500 m wide zone off the shore. On the imminent occurrence
of a storm, a yellow light flashing 60 times a minute indicates
a Level II storm warning, whereupon a prohibition on navigation
applies to small vessels of Class B under sail as well as
boats and water sports craft.
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