Bakony Mountains

▪ mountains, Hungary

      mountain range in western Hungary, covering about 1,500 square miles (4,000 square km) between Lake Balaton and the Little Alfold and running southwest-northeast for 70 miles (110 km) from the Zala River. The range forms the major component of the highlands of Dunántúl, or Transdanubia (the Bakony, Vértes, Gerecse, Budai and Pilis, and Visegrád mountains). The Keszthely and Balatoni Felvidék mountain groups are separated from the main Bakony range by the Tapolca basin and a fault, respectively. Lake Balaton occupies a large tectonic depression south of the Bakony. The mountains consist of flat-topped or undulating fragments of a step-faulted range rising toward the north. Limestone and dolomite constitute most of the Bakony, which range from 700 to 2,300 feet (210 to 700 m). In western and southern Bakony are sheets of basalt. Deposits of lignite, bauxite, and manganese in the Bakony have stimulated industrial development, as at Veszprém and Ajka. Additional deposits of bauxite were discovered in the 1970s near the village of Inarkúl. The formerly dense forest cover has been partially removed to provide farmlands in the basins and on the lower flattops. Precipitation is moderate (31 inches [800 mm] on the highest parts); most of this seeps through the limestone to emerge as springs on the mountain perimeter. The south-facing slopes overlooking Lake Balaton support a thriving wine industry.

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