Snåsavatnet is Norway's 6th largest lake, with an area of approximately 120 square kilometres (46.3 sq mi). The surface is only 24 metres (78.7 ft) above sea level. Snåsavatnet is located in the municipalities of Steinkjer

Steinkjer

is a town and a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Innherad region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Steinkjer, which is also the seat of the county government...

 and Snåsa

Snåsa

Snåsa is a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Innherred region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Snåsa. Other villages include Agle and Jørstad....

 in Nord-Trøndelag

Nord-Trøndelag

is a county constituting the northern part of Trøndelag in Norway. As of 2010, the county had 131,555 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth-least populated county. The largest municipalities are Stjørdal, Steinkjer—the county seat, Levanger, Namsos and Verdal, all with between 21,000 and...

 county, Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. The villages of Følling

Følling

Følling is a village area in the municipality of Steinkjer in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located at the southwestern end of the lake Snåsavatnet along the European route E6 highway. To the south is Vassaunet and Steinkjer , to the west is Vellamelen and Beitstad, to the northeast is...

 and Sunnan

Sunnan

Sunnan or Sundan is a village in the municipality of Steinkjer in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located in the area between the lakes Snåsavatnet and Fossemvatnet about northeast of the town of Steinkjer...

 lie at the southwestern end of the lake and the village of Snåsa

Snåsa

Snåsa is a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Innherred region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Snåsa. Other villages include Agle and Jørstad....

 lies at the northeastern end of the lake. The European route E6

European route E6

European route E 6 is the designation for the main north-south road in Norway, and the west coast of Sweden, running from the southern tip of Sweden, at Trelleborg, into Norway and through almost all of the country north to Finnmark. The route ends close to the Norwegian border with Russia...

 highway runs along the northern shore of the lake and the Nordlandsbanen

Nordlandsbanen

The Nordland Line is a railway line between Trondheim and Bodø in Norway. Running for approximately 729 km, it is the Norwegian railway system's longest line, and the only one in Norway to cross the Arctic Circle. It is owned by the Norwegian National Rail Administration...

 railway runs along the southern shore.

The lake is approximately 40 kilometres (24.9 mi) long and on average about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) wide. The lake was created by glacial erosion

Erosion

Erosion is when materials are removed from the surface and changed into something else. It only works by hydraulic actions and transport of solids in the natural environment, and leads to the deposition of these materials elsewhere...

. As is seen on a map, the lake looks like an extension of the Trondheimsfjord

Trondheimsfjord

The Trondheimsfjord , an inlet of the Norwegian Sea, is Norway's third longest fjord at long. It is located in the west central part of the country, and it stretches from Ørland in west to Steinkjer in north, passing the city of Trondheim on its way...

. The outlet is the river Byaelva, which empties into the Beitstadfjorden

Beitstadfjorden

Beitstadfjorden is the innermost arm of the Trondheimsfjord in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located in the municipalities of Steinkjer, Inderøy, Verran, and Mosvik. The fjord has a length of from southwest to northeast, and a width of about ....

 (an arm of the Trondheimsfjord

Trondheimsfjord

The Trondheimsfjord , an inlet of the Norwegian Sea, is Norway's third longest fjord at long. It is located in the west central part of the country, and it stretches from Ørland in west to Steinkjer in north, passing the city of Trondheim on its way...

) in the city of Steinkjer

Steinkjer

is a town and a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Innherad region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Steinkjer, which is also the seat of the county government...

.