17 Lakes of Latvia

Lake Alūksne is located in Alūksne Municipality, Latvia.

Bakans is a lake in Madona municipality, Latvia. It is located near to Dzelzava village and next to the lake is a smaller village, named Jaunbakani.

Lake Burtnieks is the fourth largest lake in Latvia. It is shallow with an average depth of 2.9 m. The lake bed is mainly sandy, in places a little muddy. In the southeast part of the lake there is Devoniansandstone rock. The lake has 17 species of fish, such as minnows, salmon, chubs, eels, and pike, and there are areas for duck hunting. The banks are shallow and sandy, but along the southern coast, waves have carved sandstone cliffs. After the regulation of the Salaca river in 1929, the lake level dropped by a metre, and many of the exposed shallows grew covered with reeds and algae. The lake contains three islands with a total area of 14,000 m². The lake lies entirely within the Northern Vidzeme Biosphere Reserve. Small streams from Latvia and Estonia; the Aunupīte, Bauņupīte, Briedes upe, Dūres upe, Ēķinupe, Rūjas upe, and Sedas upe flow into the lake. Lake Burtnieks is the source of 95 km long Salaca river, which flows out of the northwest corner into the Gulf of Riga. In ancient times, the lake was known as Astijärv or Aster, when northern Vidzeme was inhabited by the Livonian people. The lake is a major setting of the Latvian national epic Lāčplēsis, and appears in many Latvian folklore stories. A few small villages cling to the coast today, the largest of which is Burtnieki.

Lake Drīdzis is the deepest lake in Latvia with a maximum depth of 65.1 m.

Lake Engure is a lake in the western part of Latvia, in the Talsi District. It is the third largest lake in the country after Lake Lubāns and Lake Rāzna.

Jugla Lake is a large and scenic urban lake in Jugla, Riga, Latvia. The lake has popular beaches in the summer and ice fishing in the winter.

Kaņieris Lake or Lake Kaņieris is a lake in Latvia located in the Ķemeri National Park west of the city of Jūrmala. It is a former lagoon of the prehistoric Littorina Sea. Since 1995 it is designated a Ramsar wetland of international importance.

Kikkajärv or Ilgājs is a lake of Estonia and Latvia.

Ķīšezers is a lake in Riga, Latvia, with primary inflow of the Jugla River. The lake is 1,730 ha large, it has 2.4 metres of average depth and reaches 4.2 metres (14 ft) at the deepest point.

Lake Liepāja is the fifth-largest lake in Latvia, located near Liepāja in the Liepāja District. The total area of the lake is 37.15 km2, and it has a length of 16.2 km, average depth of 2.0 m, and a shoreline of 44.6 km.

Lake Lubāns is the largest lake in Latvia.

Murati Lake is a lake in Estonia and Latvia.

Lake Pape is a lake in Latvia about 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) south of Liepaja. It is surrounded by the Pape Nature Reserve.

Pitelis is a lake in Northern Europe. It is located on the border between Latvia and the Pskov Oblast of Russia.

Rāzna is the second largest water surface and the first in terms of water volume lake in Latvia. It is located in the eastern part of the country on the territory of Rēzekne Municipality, the water area of the lake is divided between Kaunat, Makonkalns and Černai parishes.

Lake Rychy, Richi, or Richu is a freshwater lake shared by the Braslaw District of Vitebsk Region, Belarus, and Daugavpils Municipality, Latvia.

Lake Sivers is a lake in Latvia located in the Krāslava Municipality, has a maximal depth of 24.5 m. At an elevation of 159.4 m, its surface area is 1759 ha.