Lac de Capitellu, Glacial lake in Haute-Corse mountains, France

Lac de Capitellu is a glacial lake in the upper Restonica valley, about ten kilometres from Corte in Haute-Corse. It covers 5.5 hectares at roughly 1,930 metres, ringed by summits reaching 2,230 metres. Its deep teal water lies below a steep pale grey and beige rock face of jagged, layered stone, hollowed into a dark recessed base with vertical grooves at the waterline; loose scree and patches of green vegetation slope down to the shore on the right.

The lake lies in the Restonica high valley, about ten kilometres from Corte, within the Monte Rotondo massif nature reserve. The site has been a protected "Site classé" since 1966. Its name comes from the Punta Capitello, the 2,245-metre peak above it.

The lake takes its name from the Punta Capitello, the 2,245-metre summit above it. Since 1966 the site has held the status of "Site classé", a French classification for protected landscapes. Royal eagles and bearded vultures are observed here, and the lake lies within the Réserve naturelle du massif du Monte Rotondo.

The trail leaves from the Restonica valley near Lac de Melo; the climb from Melo to Capitello takes under an hour but is more demanding than the path to Melo, with a steeper, rockier surface. The lake sits at about 1,930 m and is frozen for more than eight months a year, so the walking season is short. In high season up to 1,200 hikers arrive daily, and the site has been a protected Site classé since 1966.

At 42 metres, Lac de Capitellu is the deepest natural lake in Corsica, yet it ranks only fourth by surface area at 5.5 hectares. Its name comes from the Punta Capitello, the 2,245-metre summit above it. Cores have been drilled into the lake bed to study its sediments.