The name of the lake derives from "Caricaceae", a family of plants with broad lobed leaves.

[citation needed] The lake is located in the western Dolomites on the edge of the Latemarwald, just 20 kilometers southeast of Bolzano at 1520 m altitude in the municipality Welschnofen.

The roughly 300 m long and 140 m wide stretch of water is fed by underground springs from the Latemar mountain range.

Today the lake is one of the classic tourist destinations of the Trentino-Alto Adige.

In the winter, it is visited by divers who record documentaries of the colors of the underground waters.