The Yenisei is the deepest river in Russia, one of the greatest rivers in the world, the length of which is about 3.5 thousand kilometers - from the Sayan Mountains in southern Siberia to the Arctic Ocean. It is fed by almost 500 tributaries, the total length of which exceeds 300 thousand kilometers. One of the significant right tributaries of the Yenisei is Kureyka, a river belonging to the Kara Sea basin. Read more about it in the article.
Description
In the northwestern part of the Central Siberian Plateau lies the Putorana Plateau, bordering the Taimyr Peninsula. This amazing corner of Siberia, which is called the "country of rivers, lakes and waterfalls", is the largest conservation area in the world and is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is in the center of the Putorana plateau at an altitude of more than a thousand meters above sea level that Kureika (river) originates. It is one of the longest right tributaries of the mighty Yenisei.
Krasnoyarsk Territory is famous for its reservoirs. The mountain river Kureyka is one of the longest and most full-flowing among them. From the source to the confluence point in the Yenisei, its length is exactly 888 kilometers. the basin area is 44.7 thousand km sq., at the mouth, the water consumption is approximately 700 cubic meters. per second.
Where is the Kureyka River:
- source on the Putorana plateau (north of the Krasnoyarsk Territory) - 68 degrees 30 minutes north latitude and 96 degrees 01 minute east longitude;
- mouth (the confluence of the Yenisei) - 66 degrees 29 minutes north latitude and 87 degrees and 14 minutes east longitude.
In a straight line, the distance between the coordinates is small, but Kureika’s bed is very winding, due to this it has a large length. Throughout its length, the reservoir has numerous gorges, rapids and rifts, at which the flow rate reaches 7 meters per second. Some areas can only be reached by helicopter. Approximately at the last 170 kilometers, the current slows down, the channel expands to almost a kilometer. The river becomes most flood in May-August, when in some areas the maximum depth reaches 70 meters. But even during this period, vessels rise along it only 100 kilometers from the mouth to the Graphite Mine pier.
Why was the Kureyka River named?
The Krasnoyarsk Territory is located in Eastern and Central Siberia, and in the north-eastern part of the Territory lies the Evenki District, whose indigenous population is Evenks. They called the river, which flows through their territory, Kureika. Translated from Evenki, the name means "wild deer", as these animals often come to river valleys. Sometimes the river is called Luma or Numa. By the way, all the names on the Putorana plateau are of Evenki origin.
Climate. Flora and fauna
Kureyka is a northern river, most of its basin lies beyond the Arctic Circle. This determines the harsh climate of the region: summer lasts only two months - June, July, short autumn begins in August, and in September most of the channel is covered with ice, only some of its rapids are freezing, which remain free from ice all winter. Discards the ice fetters of Kureyka (river) only in mid-May.
The long winter lasts almost 9 months, the usual temperature for the season is minus 40 ° . In the region where Kureyka (river) flows, the main vegetation is mosses, lichens, undersized shrubs, grasses. A pleasant exception is the river valleys, where the climate is milder and more humid, and coniferous taiga forests and deciduous woodlands are found.
The animal world is quite diverse: the largest population of wild reindeer in Eurasia and the poorly studied population of snow sheep live here, lynxes, moose, bears, wolverines, sables, flying squirrels, as well as bird species such as the capercaillie, white-tailed eagle, and gyrfox are often found here.
The water in the river is very clean and tasty, there are many fish, including valuable: omul, chir, char, muksun, taimen.
Interesting Facts
There are a lot of waterfalls on the Kureyka river, and 7 kilometers from the place where the right tributary of the Yaktali flows into it, there is Big Kureysky waterfall - the most powerful in Russia. In floods, the volume of water discharged per second reaches 1000 cubic meters!
At 100 kilometers from the mouth of the river is the village of Svetlogorsk, which built the Kureyskoe reservoir and Kureyskaya hydroelectric station.
Kureyka (river) has several flowing lakes - Dupkun, Anama, Beldunchan, Dag, which regulate its drain.
In 120 kilometers from the mouth of Kureyki there are rich graphite mines.
On one of the winterhouses of this northern river from 1913 to 1917. lived in exile I.V. Stalin.