The lake serves to regulate the rivers Ruhr and Lenne as well as providing water for the Ruhrgebiet.

In middle of the Biggesee itself is the circa 30 ha (74 acres) Gilberginsel which, together with the neighboring lakeshore area, forms a nature reserve.

In 1956, the Landtag (parliament) of North Rhine-Westphalia passed a law for the financing of the Bigge Dam.

Around 2550 people had to be re-settled in the newly built districts of Neu-Listernohl, Sondern-Hanemicke und Eichhagen.

The "Bigge Valley Railway" was likewise newly laid out in the region of the lake.

Apart from the possibilities for water sports (sailing, surfing, rowing, canoeing, fishing and diving), two passenger ships ply the lake at the moment.

Additionally, there numerous cycle and hiking routes round the lake and its environs.

The Bigge Dam belongs to The Industrial Heritage Trail, and indeed to the Theme Route 12: Ruhr - Past and Present.

The Biggesee lies on the single-line Bigge Valley Railway (KBS 442), on which the Biggesee-Express (RB 92) travels hourly from Olpe, stopping a few times close to the lakeshore, and on to Finnentrop with a connection to the Ruhr-Lenne-Express (RE 16).

The relevant operator are the VWS based in Siegen, a subsidiary of the Stadtwerke Bonn, and BRS (Busverkehr Rhein-Sieg GmbH).

The ride is operated from April until the end of October, during which two ships of the Personenschifffahrt Biggesee ply the lake.