Attersee is the largest lake lying entirely within Austria, and the water is so clear and clean that boats seem to hang over their own shadows. It lies in the Salzkammergut, the lake district east of Salzburg, ringed by forested hills and with the limestone wall of the Hollengebirge at its southern end. Litzlberg sits on the western shore, a short way from Seewalchen, where the lake narrows and the shoreline is a mix of meadows, reed beds and villas with boathouses. It is a place that people have lived since the Stone Age, and the lake bed here holds the remains of prehistoric pile dwellings that are part of the UNESCO listing for such sites around the Alps.
Nothing of the pile dwellings can be seen from the shore, because the posts and the debris of daily life lie preserved in the mud under the water, a fragile record that is better left in place. What you can see is the later history of the place, and in particular the summers of Gustav Klimt. The painter spent many holidays on the Attersee from 1900 to 1916 with the Floge family, and the lake and its surroundings feature in many of his landscapes, with their square canvases and shimmering colours. Several of the views he painted, including the little castle of Kammer, can still be recognised, and the sense of a summer idyll is still strong.
The riding around the lake is a classic of the Salzkammergut. The road loops around the shore through lakeside villages, with views of the water and the mountains, and then climbs through meadows and woods. The surfaces are smooth, the bends are gentle and the traffic is heavy on summer weekends, so the best time to ride is a weekday morning in May or September. In summer, the lake is warm enough for swimming, and the water temperature on a hot day can reach the mid-twenties.
Seewalchen, three kilometres away, has fuel, a supermarket and cafes, and Attnang-Puchheim, a bigger railway town, is to the north. Local fish from the lake, such as Reinanke or char, is served smoked or fried at lakeside inns, and the local cake and coffee are excellent. Wear layers, because the weather in the Alps can change quickly, and bring a swimsuit.