What names did not receive the largest Donbass river Donets Seversky from visiting travelers throughout its long history. And, in general, good names, but can the original Slavic river flowing past the Holy Assumption Svyatogorsky Lavra be called Donel, Tanais or Sirgis? It flowed from Seversky land, was a tributary of the Don, what should it be called, if not Don Seversky?
The largest right tributary of the Don
The largest river in eastern Ukraine originates in the Central Russian Upland, in the Belgorod Region of the Russian Federation, near the village of Podolha. The most interesting thing is that it flows into
the Don River also on the territory of the Russian Federation, but already in the Rostov Region. The total length of the river is 1,053 kilometers (area - 98,900 sq. Km), of which only one third is located in 330 km, the rest (middle)
of the river flows through three regions of eastern Ukraine: Kharkov, Donetsk and Lugansk - and is the fourth the largest river of this country. It is difficult to overestimate the role of this water artery for the east of Ukraine, because it is the main source of fresh water in this region.
Some geographic data
The entire basin of the Donets River Seversky is very large and almost equal to the Rhine basin, but is twice as inferior to it in terms of water volumes. There are no more than 1000 rivers directly flowing into Seversky Donets. In total, according to many, significantly different data, there are about 2500-3000 rivers in its basin. The largest of them, such as Kazenny Torets, Bakhmutka, Oskol, Aydar, Lugan, have a length of more than 10 kilometers. The river itself, in turn, is the largest tributary of the Don and flows into it 218 kilometers from the mouth. The width of the river ranges from 30 to 70 meters, along the entire length there are reservoirs, in the area of which the Donets spills up to 4 km. Depth varies from 10 m in the reaches (the deepest part, usually located on the concave part of the bend, or meanders) to 0.3 m in shallow water. This aquatic artery is flat, shallow, severe winters. And so the river Seversky Donets freezes in the cold season for 2-3 months. The thickness of the ice is 30-50 cm. “As the ice sang in the frost on the Seversky Donets,” - so it is sung in one song. But it does not freeze everywhere, and in many places the ice is thin, so lovers of underwater fishing need to be very careful.
Channel Features
Due to the absence of mountains over a long length, the river has a wide valley: in the upper reaches of 8-10 km, in the lower reaches its size reaches 20-26 kilometers. However, the shores in most cases differ in level - they are asymmetric. One coast, right, high, sometimes rocky, and in some places consists of chalk rocks, as in Svyatogorsk.
The opposite (left) bank is flat. On it there is a floodplain with numerous ponds, channels of dried rivers (elders), wetlands. There are large lakes, for example, Liman. The river is winding and diverse: along its entire length there are rapids and rifts, swifts and blockages. All this is more common in the upper and central parts. Water resources are replenished mainly due to natural precipitation - rains and snowmelt.
River of life for the industrial east of Ukraine
As on any river that flows through industrial areas and serves as a source of drinking water for the population (Seversky Donets provides it only in Ukraine with three large industrial cities - Kharkov, Donetsk and Lugansk), dams have been built and reservoirs have been created. In the upper reaches, to the Russian city of Belgorod, there are several, but not very large ones. Downstream, the Volchya River flows into Donetsk Seversky, and immediately beyond it is the Pecheneg reservoir. It is intended for the needs of the city of Kharkov.
Inflows and canals that give life to the river, and the reasons that kill it
The Donets Coal Basin receives the necessary water thanks to the Seversky Donets-Donbass Canal, which was built significantly downstream. Before it, Donets takes in the waters of the Uda and Oskol rivers (its largest tributary). Right there, in the middle of its course, he receives water from the Dnieper (Dnieper-Donbass canal). In total, about 148 reservoirs were built in the Donetsk region for the needs of various enterprises.
This suggests that the industrial potential of the region is very high, and the climate here is arid. Therefore, the role of the Seversky Donets cannot be overestimated, and the concerns of ecologists and simply not indifferent people who sound the alarm about the death of the river are understandable. The reasons for this tragedy are different. In addition to the traditional deforestation and the approach of arable land directly to the shores, the enormous abstraction of water for industrial needs and its return in smaller quantities, and even in a warmer state, exotic algae appeared. Pistia, or water salad, literally flooded the river in two years.
Calm and wide river downstream
In the region of the capital of Donbass and further, in the Rostov region, Seversky Donets crosses the Donetsk ridge. It is clear that there is practically no valley, and the banks are steep and rocky. And already closer to the mouth, where Seversky Donets is divided into three branches, many locks block the river for 200 km. Naturally, the flow here is slow, the width varies from 100 to 200 meters. From here the river becomes navigable.
Paradise for fishermen
Despite the problems, fishing at the Seversky Donets, in
which is home to 41 species of fish. Of course, both pollution and tropical aliens, destroying the natural environment for the restoration of fish stocks, significantly reduced the number of valuable species of fish that have lived here for centuries. But of the large and medium, pike, pikeperch, and catfish, and bream remained here. But Seversky Donets is especially rich in small species such as rudd, perch, roach. Fishing on this river is also good because, due to the different widths (from 30 to 200 meters) of the channel, you can engage in various types of fishing and check fishing gears and skills.
Treasured places
Fishing enthusiasts are especially honored and respected by the surroundings of Svyatogorsk, which A.P. Chekhov called Donetsk Switzerland. And the point is not even in the peculiar beauty of the surroundings, and not in the fact that there are "holy, prayed places" (Artemyevsky monastery). The point is an integrated approach: both fishing is beautiful, and the places are beautiful, and the entrance is incredibly convenient (nearby, a few kilometers away is the Rostov-Kharkiv-Donetsk highway).
Places that are particularly popular are known and usually occupied. But the river is good because you can always find a stretch of coast to your liking. The abundance of residential villages located along the water will allow you to leave the car in a paid parking lot. It is in the area of Svyatogorsk that you can catch representatives of almost all types of fish that are found in the Seversky Donets, and even asp. The specimens are so large that it is impossible to lift them when fishing from a bridge.
Both in winter and in summer ...
The best fishing in the summer, but the ice bite is good, you just need to remember that the river does not freeze completely and the winter cover is thin in some places, however, perch fishing in these places is very good after the first frost. Across the river there are surprisingly many places for a "quiet hunt": Raisins, Savintsy (chubs are caught here). But near some industrial cities, or rather, a little downstream, it is unsafe to fish, because harmful production waste is thrown into the river.
River and forest - what could be better for relaxation?
Most residents of the five regions whose territories flow the river do not wonder where to spend their holidays or Sunday vacations. Seversky Donets, its picturesque shores, mixed forest, suitable directly to the water, clean healing air - all and always had the construction of recreation centers and sanatoriums.
It can be argued that almost every major enterprise in any of the five regional centers: Russian Belgorod and Rostov-on-Don, Ukrainian Kharkov, Donetsk and Lugansk - has a recreation center, a children's camp or a dispensary on the banks of the Seversky Donets. These beautiful places were visited by poets and artists. There were Chekhov and Tyutchev, Tsvetaeva and Bunin, Nemirovich-Danchenko and Repin. Perhaps one of them called these beauties Pridontsovye.
The Pearl of the Cis
And, of course, the treasury of these places is the same Svyatogorsk. In its vicinity is the Holy Assumption Lavra, one of the most beautiful Orthodox monasteries. A very beautiful bridge across Seversky Donets leads to it from Svyatogorsk itself. It sells souvenirs from the local pine with drawings of the main attraction - Lavra, musicians perform. The Holy Assumption Svyatogorsk Lavra itself is the most important object of the Holy Mountains National Natural Park, created in 1997. It is unique because on its territory there are relict trees such as, for example, chalk pine native to the preglacial period, 129 archaeological sites belonging to the time period from the Paleolithic to the Middle Ages, historical monuments here 73. The Holy Mountains National Park and all Its territories and facilities are under state protection.
Seversky Donets on the map
The river Seversky Donets is very diverse. The map on which it was depicted for the first time under the name Sewerski was published by the cartographer G. Mercator in 1595. On the 1154 map of the Arab geographer Idrisi (1099-1165), it is also marked, but under the name Rusia.
The word "Donetsk" is present in many names: Donetsk, for example, or Donetsk Seymitsa (a tributary of the Seimas). There are only five rivers, the names of which include this word, but not one of them is named only by him. The title necessarily contains a high-quality adjective. In addition to Seversky, these are Linden, Sazhnoy, Dry and Dead Donets.
Unusually picturesque
Much has been said about the beauty of the described river, but as they say, it’s better to see it once, at least in pictures that capture the Seversky Donets River from the source to the mouth. The photos presented in the article do not embellish reality at all. There really are beautiful green islands on the river, and the trees growing along the banks come in even more bizarre shapes.