Kaprun High Dams

Snapshot

The Kaprun High Dams are two massive arched reservoirs, the Wasserfallboden at 1,672 m and the Mooserboden at 2,036 m, built into a glacial cirque above Kaprun between 1938 and 1955. Austria’s most impressive feat of hydroelectric engineering and a place where industrial history and alpine landscape meet in a way that is hard to look away from.

The Story

The project began under the Nazi regime, conceived as a prestige infrastructure investment and a means of securing Austria’s energy independence. Construction during the war years used forced labour: prisoners of war, forced labourers, and workers from concentration camps were among those who built the access roads and the dam structures in conditions of extreme hardship and danger. The number of deaths during construction is difficult to establish precisely, but the human cost was considerable. Construction continued after the war and the dams were finally completed in 1955, the same year Austria regained full sovereignty, and were positioned as a symbol of postwar reconstruction and national capability.

Today the Glockner-Kaprun system is one of Austria’s most significant sources of hydroelectric power, and the reservoirs continue to operate. Visitors reach the upper valley by electric bus from Kaprun, the private road closed to ordinary vehicles. At the Mooserboden the scale becomes clear: two great arched dams holding a lake of glacial-green water, with the Kitzsteinhorn glacier rising directly above and the surrounding peaks enclosing the cirque on three sides. Walking the dam wall above that water, with the dam structure dropping hundreds of metres to the valley below, is a particular experience.

The combination of setting and history is what makes the Kaprun High Dams more than a scenic stop. The engineering is genuinely monumental. The landscape is genuinely beautiful. The history of how it was built does not disappear when the view is good.

Visiting

Electric buses to the reservoir area depart from Kaprun town; tickets are purchased at the base station and include transport to the lower reservoir (Wasserfallboden) and, with additional payment, to the upper (Mooserboden). The road is open approximately May through October; exact dates vary by year and snow conditions. The walk along the dam walls is accessible to most visitors; the terrain around the lakes is more varied. Allow a half day minimum; a full day permits unhurried exploration of both levels. Warm layers are needed at altitude even in summer. Combine with the Kitzsteinhorn for a full day in the Kaprun valley.