page_title: Vindelfjällen Nature Reserve
section_title: Hydrography
hierarchical_section_title: Vindelfjällen Nature Reserve / Geography / Hydrography
caption_attribution_description: View of the south part of Tärnasjön lake from Kungsleden, Vindelfjällen, Swedish Lapland.
context_page_description: The Vindelfjällen Nature Reserve is a nature reserve located in the municipalities of Sorsele and Storuman in Västerbotten County of Swedish Lapland. It is the largest natural reserve in Sweden and one of the largest protected areas in Europe, totaling 562,772 ha.
  Most of the reserve is made up of several Scandinavian Mountains, the main ones being Artfjället, Norra Storfjället, Ammarfjället and Björkfjället. Most of the landscapes of the Swedish mountains are represented. This ranges from the pronounced alpine character of Norra Storfjället, which includes the highlight of the reserve, the Norra Sytertoppen, to the plateau and plains near the base of the mountains. The differences in elevation highlight the diversity of rocks in the mountains. Among the mountains are the valleys and waterways of the Ume River drainage basin. This includes a portion of the Vindel River, after which the reserve is named. Towards the east, the elevation decreases and the mountains give way to the Lapland Plains.
  This landscape diversity also includes biodiversity. The reserve covers the primary forests of the Nordic taiga in the eastern plains to alpine tundra and birch forests in the west.
context_section_description: The Vindelfjällen mountains have a rich river system flowing through it. The reserve covers a large part of the mountainous section of the Ume River watershed and protects the Vindel River, the main tributary of the watershed. The Vindel River is one of four "national rivers" with the Torne River, Kalix River and the Pite River: four great rivers of northern Sweden whose watershed is fully protected against the construction of dams and whose flow is currently unregulated. The Vindel River forms a large number of rapids upstream from Ammarnäs.
  There are several other major rivers in the reserve. The Tjulån River originates at the Tjulträsk lakes and joins the Vindel River in Ammarnäs. The Juktån River passes the great lake Överst Juktan and continues outside the reserve to Ume River for a total length of 170 km. Finally the Tärnaån River originates at Lake Tärnasjön before joining into the Ume River just outside the reserve. The Ume River itself is located outside the reserve, between the Artfjället mountain ranges and the rest of the reserve and unlike the rivers within the reserve, its waters have been regulated and used for hydroelectric power.
  The reserve has several lakes, the largest of which often have an elongated shape, following the topography of the valleys. The two largest lakes are Överst-Juktan and Tärnasjön, both measuring about 20 km long. The Tärnasjön is particularly notable for the large number of small islands in the southern third of the lake, forming a mosaic of water and forest, which extends south of the lake to one of the largest wetlands reserves. Another vast wetland, Laivamyren, is located north of the lake. It covers no less than 20 km² and includes the remains of the southernmost palsas of Sweden. Another wetland of importance, though less extensive, is Marsivagge in Ammarfjället mountain range. Finally, many wetlands are scattered in areas of lower elevations in the east.
  Finally, water is found in the form of glaciers in areas where the altitude exceeds 1,600 m, or in other words, in the Norra Storfjället mountain range and more locally in Ammarfjället. Glacier names include Murtserglaciären, Måskonåiveglaciären, Norra Syterglaciären, Tärnaglaciären, Östra and Västra Skrapetjakkeglaciären, and Östra Syterglaciären, all of which have been studied since the late nineteenth century.
caption: A maze of islands in the southern part of Lake Tärnasjön
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