Gurk (river)

Gurk
Gurk River near Grafenstein
Location
Country	Austria
State	Carinthia
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	Gurksee and Torersee, Albeck
• elevation	1,970 m (6,460 ft) (Gurksee) 2,010 m (6,590 ft) (Torersee)
Mouth
• location	Drava near Völkermarkt
• coordinates	46°36′35″N 14°31′36″E
Length	155.6 km (96.7 mi)
Basin size	2,585.1 km2 (998.1 sq mi)
Basin features
Progression	Drava→ Danube→ Black Sea

The Gurk (German pronunciation: [ɡʊʁk] ; Slovene: Krka) is a river in the Austrian state of Carinthia, a left tributary of the Drava. With a length of 156 km (97 mi) it is the longest river that flows entirely within Carinthia. Its drainage basin is 2,585.1 km² (998.1 sq mi), which covers about 27% of the state's territory.

Gurktal near Reichenau

The Gurk rises in the Nock Mountains (Gurktal Alps) of the Central Eastern Alps, near the border with the Austrian state of Styria. Its sources are two small cirque lakes, the Gurksee and the Torersee near Albeck and the Turracher Höhe Pass, a protected area since 1981. The Gurksee has an elevation of 1,970 m (6,460 ft), an area of 4,000 m² (43,000 sq ft), and is 1.5 m (4.9 ft) deep; the Torersee lies 2,010 m (6,590 ft) above sea level, has an area of 3,500 m² (38,000 sq ft), and is 1.2 m (3.9 ft) deep. Since both lake are frozen in the winter, they contain no fish.

It flows southwest to Ebene Reichenau and then turns eastwards running through Gnesau and the Gurktal valley to the market town of Gurk. Near Straßburg it again turns to the south, enters the Klagenfurt basin, and flows into the Drava west of Völkermarkt.

Its tributaries include the Görtschitz, the Metnitz (left), and the Glan (right).

References

• The information in this article is based on a translation of its German equivalent.
• W. Honsig-Erlenburg, G. Wieser: Die Gurk und ihre Seitengewässer. Verlag des Naturwissenschaftlichen Vereins für Kärnten, Klagenfurt 1997, ISBN 3-85328-009-9