Březová Reservoir, reservoir

Březová Reservoir is a 2 km long reservoir on the Teplá River in the Kaiserwald forest, 4 km southwest of Karlovy Vary. Its straight concrete gravity dam is 228.8 m long, 8.4 m wide at the crest, and 24.95 m high, with five crown spillways and two outlets; the dam crest carries the I/20 road.

After the flood of 24 November 1890, Karlovy Vary planned flood defences; a 1907 expert report proposed two dams, but only the Teplá dam was built. Work began in July 1931 under a consortium of Lanna (Prague) and Pittel & Brausewetter (Vienna), finished in October 1935, and the reservoir opened in 1937. The small hydro plant was installed in 1988 and modernised in 2002.

The dam can be crossed via the main road that connects Karlovy Vary to other towns, providing good access to the area. Walking along the dam offers views of the water, and during lower water levels, submerged structures become visible at the bottom.

When the water level drops, the old stone toll bridge over the Teplá, flooded when the reservoir filled, becomes visible on the reservoir bed. The same low water also exposes the old road bridge of the former Karlovy Vary–Mariánské Lázně road.