Lakes and rivers of the Stavropol Territory

In the valleys of the rivers Kuma, Egorlyk and Kalaus, in the central part of Ciscaucasia, on the Stavropol Upland, Stavropol region is located, which is famous for its resort area of the Caucasian Mineral Waters.

Geography of the Stavropol Territory

The area of Stavropol is 66.16 km², it includes 26 administrative districts with a population of 2.8 million people, of which 58.36% of the urban population (data as of 01/01/2017).

The climate of the region is moderately continental. The terrain is complex. The central part is occupied by the Stavropol Upland, which connects to the foothills of the Greater Caucasus in the south, flows smoothly into the Tersko-Kum lowland and the Azov-Kuban lowland to the west, in the north it joins the Kumo-Manych depression.

In the foothill part you can distinguish Pyatigorye - a volcanic region with numerous peaks. The maximum height is observed in the region of Kislovodsk and reaches 1603 meters above sea level. The smallest peak lies in the lower reaches of the Kuma River. Its height is only 6 meters.

The rivers, lakes and mountains of the Stavropol Territory are original and picturesque. There are 130 mineral water springs in Stavropol. Water resources of the region are not only nature-created rivers and lakes, but also man-made reservoirs, ponds and canals, which are used for moistening arid steppe lands.

The rivers of Stavropol

The rivers of the Stavropol Territory belong to the basins of the Caspian and Azov Seas. Due to the arid climate in most of the land, the density of the river network is insignificant and unevenly distributed. The densest rivers are located in the foothills, and to the east and north their number is significantly reduced. What are the rivers in the Stavropol Territory?

In the Stavropol Territory there are just over 200 rivers and streams. Most of them are small rivers. The length of such rivers is from 101 to 200 km with a catchment area of 1,000 to 2,000 km². The rivers flowing in the eastern part of the region contain a large number of mineral elements, which is due to the salinity of local soils.

The list of the rivers of the Stavropol Territory can be divided into two parts: the rivers belonging to the Azov-Black Sea basin and belonging to the Caspian Sea basin.

The main rivers of the Azovo-Black Sea basin

This is the Western Manych, Egorlyk, Kalaus and Kuban. The few rivers of the Stavropol Territory are mainly fed by rain and melting snow. The watershed between the basins of the Azov and Caspian seas, passing from the village of Divnoe through the city of Stavropol, then through Elbrus and the mountains of Beshtau, is a component of the main watershed. The names of the rivers of the Stavropol Territory often have Turkic roots.

Western Manych

The left tributary of the Don is the Western Manych. In translation from the Turkic "Manych" means "bitter". Its source is located in the place of the former fork of the river to the Western and Eastern Manych, the Kalaus River. The length of the Western Manych is 219 km. The current of this river passes through the valley of the Manych valley. It feeds mainly by melting the snow cover. The main tributaries are Kalaus and Egorlyk. Western Manych is most often used for fishing.

Kalaus

This is the second large tributary of the Western Manych (left). "Kalaus" in translation from the Turkic - "fortress". The river begins on the slopes of Mount Bryk and flows along the Stavropol Upland. Its length is 436 km. The river feeds from springs, melted snow and rains. The banks are steep and steep, sometimes reaching a height of 15 m. Kalaus has 81 tributaries. In the immediate vicinity of the source are Maikop clays, due to which the river's water is muddy, salty and not suitable for drinking.

Egorlyk

The Egorlyk river of the Stavropol Territory is the left tributary of the Western Manych. Its source is on Mount Stryzhament. Egorlyk flows into the proletarian reservoir. Its length is 458 km. It flows in the Stavropol Territory, the Rostov Region and the Republic of Kalmykia. The river feeds into the upper reaches - snow and underground, in the lower reaches - snow and rain. It has two large tributaries: Bolshaya Kugulta and Kalaly.

Kuban

The Kuban River is the largest river in the Stavropol Territory. Its source is the western slope of Mount Elbrus, where the Uchkulan and Ullukam rivers merge. The length of the Kuban River is about 870 km. The route of its current passes through Karachaevo-Cherkessia in Stavropol, then - to the border of the Krasnodar region with Adygea, it flows into the Azov Sea. The waters of the river are used for drinking and irrigation.

The largest inflow of the Kuban is Bolshoe Zelenchuk. The highest rise in water level can be observed in the second half of summer. Filling of the riverbed of the Kuban takes place due to rains, melted waters, including from mountain glaciers, underground currents. In the Stavropol Territory, the river is mainly fed by rainwater. The main rivers of the Caspian Sea basin are Terek, Kuma, Gorkaya Balka, Vostochny Manych.

Terek

The source of this river of the Stavropol Territory lies in the Trusov Gorge, located on the Main Caucasian Range. The length of the Terek river bed is 623 km. The river flows from Georgia to North Ossetia, then through the territory of Kabardino-Balkaria and the Stavropol Territory, through Chechnya and Dagestan into the Agrakhan Gulf of the Caspian Sea. Its main inflow is Malka. The food of the river mainly comes from the melting of mountain glaciers and snow, so flooding occurs at the height of summer. Terek is used for irrigation of adjacent fields and gardens.

East Manych

The source and feeding sources are the same as those of the Western Manych. The length is 141 km. After human intervention, the river Kalaus no longer replenishes the Eastern Manych, but only the Western. Flows through the territory of Kalmykia and Stavropol. Before the Caspian Sea, the river flows through the Sostinsky lakes. Water quality is low, it can not be used for drinking.

Kuma

The source of Kuma lies on the northern slope of the Rocky Range in Karachay-Cherkessia. Its length is 809 km. The food for the river is for the most part rainfall and groundwater. Sometimes due to lack of precipitation Kuma does not reach the Caspian Sea. The river feeds on its waters the Kuma valley. Its tributaries are Wet and Dry Karamik, Zolka, Podkumok, Tomuzlovka, Wet Buffalo.

Bitter Beam

The sources of this river are the springs of St. George's district. Its length is 183 km. The tributary of the Gorkaya Balka River is Dry Gorkaya.

Lakes of the Stavropol Territory

Stavropol can not boast of a large number of lakes. They are only 38, but among them you can find a variety of characteristics, unusual, rich in fish and mud mud lakes.

One of these unusual lakes in the Stavropol region is a karst lake. The failure of pure blue, which invariably attracts a large number of tourists. This lake is at the bottom of a cone-shaped cave, similar to a funnel. The height of the cave is 41 meters. The depth of the lake is 11 m, the diameter is 15 m. The water temperature is from +26 to +42 ° C. He has a blue color from the presence of hydrogen sulphide and special bacteria.

The Stavropol region is famous for its salt lakes, which can compete with the Dead Sea in the quality of medicinal mud. In Lushnikovskoe lake near Svetlograd, for example, once the army commander, Budyonny treated his men from wounds.

One of the most popular lakes in Stavropol is the healing lake Tambukan, which is located on the border of Stavropol and Kabardino-Balkaria. In the name of the lake, the name of the great Kabardian prince, who was the ancestor of the ancient Tambiev family, was immortalized. Many researchers consider this lake the remnant of a disappeared sea. The therapeutic mud from the bottom of Tambukan is used in all health resorts of the Caucasian Mineral Waters.

But most of all the lakes of Stavropol are famous for their fishing. Lake Dovsun and the Chograiskoye reservoir, located in the Arzgir district, are extremely popular with fishermen from all over Russia and are famous for the variety of fish species.

Sengileevskoe Lake is also a reservoir, which supplies fresh water to the regional center. Once it was called Fish and was not too deep. But then, in 1958, after the construction of the dam, the water level in it rose so much that its depth became almost like in the Azov Sea.

Another lake popular with fishermen is Lake Velikoye, which is located on the border with Kalmykia. Such lakes of Stavropol, as Beloe, Manych-Gudilo, Bald Liman, Maly Manych, Manych, are also known as fish.

Very much attracts fans to fish relict lake Kravtsovo, which is considered a natural mystery of the Stavropol Territory. This lake can overgrow and self-clean. The reasons for this phenomenon have not yet been discovered by scientists. Lake Kravtsovo is also very rich in peat.

You can read the description of the Stavropol Territory, its rivers, lakes, boundless steppes and magnificent mountain landscapes for a long time, but nothing will replace your personal presence. It is better to see everything with your own eyes. The rivers and lakes of the Stavropol Territory - this is something that should definitely be looked at.