Vättern

Vättern is a long, deep freshwater lake in southern Sweden, second in size only to Vänern among the country's lakes. Its waters flow eastward by the Motala ström to the Baltic. Vadstena, on the eastern shore, became a place of pilgrimage around Saint Bridget's abbey, while the lake linked settlements on its long shores. In 1832 the Göta Canal opened a waterway through Vättern between Vänern and the Baltic, joining waters that had previously drained toward different seas.