The Indigirka River: geographical information. The Indigirka River and its seven remarkable places. Through which plain does the Indigirka River flow?

The Indigirka River is located in Yakutia, part of the East Siberian Sea.

History reference

The river got its name from the generic Even name Indigir, which means people of the Indi clan. Development began by the Cossacks in the first half of the 17th century.

Source

The mouth of the river is formed by two reservoirs, these are Tuora-Yuryakh and Taryn-Yuryakh, which originate in the Halkan Mountains. It flows down the territory of Yakutia, and near the Allaikhovsky district of the republic flows into the sea.

Characteristics

The Indigirka River is divided into:

• Upper mountain area (640km)
• Lower Plain (1,086 kmZ).

Indigirka river photo

The banks of the river are mountain highlands, ridges, chains, and then abruptly give way to depressions and lowlands. The basin was formed on the site of rocks that have long frozen under the influence of low temperatures and climatic conditions. Near the coast there are many alluvial soils.

The length of the Indigirka is more than 1.7 thousand kilometers, with a basin area of ​​​​360 thousand square kilometers. The depth ranges from 7.5 to 11 meters. The width is different on the upper and lower sections of the river - from 500 meters to 20 kilometers. There are many rapids, estuaries, and deltas in the basin. The river is separated from the sea by a small shallow bay.

The climate is sharply continental. In winter, the average temperature is -40 degrees, in summer +14 degrees. Summer is short and winter is long. The average flow velocity is 3m/s. Flowing into the East Siberian Sea, it forms a delta, the area of ​​\u200b\u200bwhich is 5,500 square km.

Indigirka on the map

Indigirka on the map photo

River mode

The nutrition of Indigirka is mixed, it is carried out due to snow, rain, and melting ice. High water is typical in spring and summer. In winter, the entire river freezes, since the water temperature drops to minus 50. The river is covered with ice in October, the river opens in late May, early June.

Flora and fauna

The river passes through taiga, tundra, forest tundra and arctic forests. The local ichthyofauna is very rich in fish - 29 species, including:

• Chir;
• Omul;
• Sturgeon;
• Nelma;
• Vendace;
• Keta;
• Pink salmon;
• Muksun.

Cities

On the banks of the river there are a lot of settlements, both large and small, most of which are located in Momsky, Abysky. Allaikhovskiy and Oymyakonskiy districts. The largest cities are Oymyakon, Belaya Gora, Chokurdakh, Khonuu.

river Indigirka. Oymyakon city photo

tributaries

Large tributaries are located in the upper and lower reaches, which are located on the right and left banks. For example, large arms are Nera, Moma, Uyandina, Allaikha, Elgi. Chiya, Arga-Yuryakh, Talbykchan, Taskan, Berelekh are considered much smaller tributaries.

Economic activity

Minerals are mined: coal, gold. Fishing and reindeer husbandry are developed. Indigirka is one of the most significant waterways of the North-East of Russia.

Tourism on the river

Travelers who visit Yakutia go in for fishing and rafting and kayaking in the summer.

Indigirka river photo

• One of the busiest transport routes in the country, along which river transport runs.
• On the river is the village of Oymyakon, which is considered the pole of cold.
• Quite an interesting monument of the 19th century. considered the city of Zashiversk, which became a monument to the entire population, which at the end of the 19th century. died from a smallpox epidemic.
• Scientists explain the origin of the name of the hydronym as the name of the Evenk tribe - Indigir, which had a generic origin. It meant the dog river or people from the Indy family.

beauty of Russia. Indigirka river photo

Indigirka river

Perhaps, most of the inhabitants of Russia, at least somehow familiar with the geography of their native country, have heard about Indigirka. And for this majority it seems to be a very distant, wild and uninhabited river. In fact, if you get to know Indigirka in reality, it turns out that these ideas are not far from the truth. Although, as on all other rivers, people have settled on the banks of the Indigirka since ancient times. Once Yukagirs, Evens and other peoples, later Yakuts and Russians. But even now there are not so many settlements here, and even those are not very large.

The routes of many of my expeditions are connected with Indigirka.

Main markers of the Indigirka River

The largest of them is the village of Ust-Nera, with a population of about six thousand people, although in the best Soviet times, during the heyday of geological activity, the population here reached twelve thousand. But even now there are prospects for Ust-Nera, because the village is located at the intersection of two transport arteries - the Kolyma highway, the only highway that crosses the river and connects Yakutsk with Magadan, and Indigirka itself, which in this capacity works not only in summer, but also in winter. It is from Ust-Nera that navigation is possible for small boats down the river, but only to the place called the “Indigirskaya Pipe”. There the river enters a narrow and severe gorge among the mountains of the Chersky ridge, where formidable and impassable rapids rage. Navigation also exists in the lower part of the river from the mouth to the village of Khonuu. But when Indigirka freezes, that's when it becomes a road, the winter road on which all cargo transportation is carried out to the villages located down the river. And even from Chokurdakh itself, which is already in the lowest reaches, you can go to the Kolyma highway, and from here anywhere, even to Moscow itself. But the winter road along the Indigirka is a separate topic, worthy of its own story, the road is harsh and dangerous, but there is no other here.
The Indigirka is one of the largest rivers in the north-east of Russia, having an independent flow into the sea. Its length, together with the sources, reaches almost two thousand kilometers. Although, in fact, this river is called Indigirka only after the confluence of the two rivers Tuora-Yuryakh and Taryn-Yuryakh. The sources of the Indigirka originate in the Suntar-Khayat ridge and the Oymyakon highland, then the river cuts through the ridges of a huge mountain system called the Chersky ridge, the most elevated in the north-east of the country. It is here that the most severe and difficult places on the river, but here, and the most beautiful. Coming out of the mountains of the Chersky ridge, the Indigirka carries its waters along the Momo-Selennyakh intermountain basin. Then it crosses the not very high spurs of the Momsky Range and only after that it finally enters the plain, where it flows in the low-lying shores of the remaining a little more than a thousand kilometers up to the East Siberian Sea. From the very source to the mouth, the Indigirka flows through the territory of Yakutia.
As for the name of the river, under this name it became known in geography since 1636, when the Tobolsk Cossack Ivan Rebrov got here by sea from the mouth of the Yana. This was the first discovery of Indigirka by Russians. From local languages, the name can be translated as "Dog's River", this is probably due to the fact that local residents had only dogs as pets. However, there is another version that the Even kind of indie lived here. Indigyr - people of the indie family. But we will leave all these versions to historians.
You can tell a lot of interesting things about Indigirka, in completely different aspects. And there is no way to avoid, of course, the landscape or aesthetic appeal of this river. There are so many amazingly beautiful places that will not leave anyone indifferent. This is just heaven for a professional landscape photographer. But paradise is harsh and hard to reach. And, due to the fact that not many people come here, few people have seen these places. And even more so, visually, few imagined wide view. So it's time to do it.

More than once, the Indigirka River was woven into the routes of my photo expeditions. I know it from the very headwaters to Chokurdakh. And I can confess that the Indigirka is my favorite river in Yakutia. I am glad to introduce you to her wild and pristine beauty.

After Indigirka overcomes the mountains of the Chemalginsky ridge, the last obstacle from the ridges of the Chersky mountain system, for some time it enters the expanse of the Momo-Selennyakh intermountain basin. But this is not for long, only until the confluence of the large right tributary of the Moma River. Behind the mouth of the Moma, the river enters the mountains again, only now these are spurs of the Momsky Range. Here, too, you can find many very beautiful places and angles. The Momsky Mountains are the last on the way of the Indigirka, then it goes out onto the plain and flows in low-lying shores until it reaches the sea.

Zashiversk. Perhaps this is the most historical place on Indigirka, connected with the history of development Russian state new territories in the northeast of the continent. In 1639, a detachment of servicemen under the command of Postnik Ivanov crossed from the upper reaches of the Yana River, where Verkhoyansk was already then, by land, that is, on horseback, to Indigirka. Here, where the river flows among the spurs of the Momsky Range, almost opposite the mouth of the left tributary of the Kolyadin, a winter hut was set up. This was just a hut at that time.
In the middle of the century, the winter hut was equipped, and it was surrounded by a fortified wall, several towers were built at the corners of the fort. And then they lived in the adjacent territory, mainly Yukaghirs. Four times its walls were besieged. And around 1700, the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior was built by a team of local carpenters headed by Andrey Khovarov. This church, one of the masterpieces of Russian wooden architecture, was built without a single larch nail. And most importantly, miraculously preserved to this day. Unfortunately, but it's reasonable, she's not here right now. In 1971, it was transported to Novosibirsk, restored and installed on the territory of the open-air historical and architectural museum. A chapel now stands in its place.
Zashiversk was founded primarily as a military-administrative center for collecting yasak. The city stood at the crossroads of major roads. From Yakutsk through Zashiversk there were overland routes to the Kolyma and further to Anadyr, along the Indigirka they sailed to the Arctic Ocean. Expeditions of Stadukhin and Dezhnev stopped here. The significance of Zashiversk especially increased in the first half of the 18th century, when the work of the Great Northern Expedition began. Detachments of explorers of the Arctic Ocean Laptev and Sarychev passed through the city.
According to historical data, the last page in the history of the city is associated with an epidemic of smallpox that hit the townspeople in 1883 and killed almost everyone.
Zashiversk was no longer restored after that terrible epidemic.

After the river again enters the open space from the narrow gorge of the Indigirskaya Pipe, it cannot calm down for some time. And although the last and most powerful rapid of the Krivun remains opposite the right tributary of the Kyuellyakh-Mustakh, still for some time there are shivers on the river. And about ten kilometers below Krivun, on the left, the Chibagalakh River flows into the Indigirka. Here, finally, the river valley expands significantly, and from here stunning views of the mountains of the Porozhny Range, one of many in the global mountain range of the Chersky Range, open up. It is the Porozhny Range that is an obstacle on the way of the Indigirka, which it successfully overcomes. But from the mouth of the Chibagalakh, the mountains of the Porozhny Range are no longer perceived as an obstacle, but are perceived as a background decoration for the photographer. And this distant plan is usually generous with surprises.

In the vicinity of the village of Ust-Nera, which stands at the confluence of the Nera with the Indigirka, many remnant complexes are scattered over a vast area over the peaks and ridges of mountains composed of granites. Similar miraculous granite idols are also found in other regions of Yakutia, they are called Kisilyakhs here. But this is in Russian transcription, in Yakut it sounds closer like Kigilyakhi, but it is written Kizhileekhi. This is from the word Kizhi - a person, that is, similar to a person. And indeed, in the appearance of the remnants, you can see anything, including finding a resemblance to a person and even seeing a certain character. There is Kisilyakh and very close to Ust-Nera, you just have to leave the village and climb the mountain. But the most interesting and in the largest number should be looked for a little further, down the Indigirka on the right bank, almost immediately behind the mouth of the Nera.

About twenty kilometers below the non-residential village of Predporozhny, Indigirka makes a sharp loop. The river carrying its waters here to the north, suddenly seems to run into an insurmountable barrier and sharply turns to the south. But then, having bypassed this barrier, it again rushes to the north and then a little to the east. As a result, it almost closes the loop. You can even figuratively say that the river is tied into a knot. This characteristic loop is called here - Horseshoe. And if you look at the map, then a comparison with this horse attribute will seem quite appropriate. But in the photo here is not the Horseshoe itself, but the bend of the river in front of the entrance to this loop. But the photographer is just standing in the place where the narrowest place of the Horseshoe is located, at its base.

A little lower than the two already closed mining villages - Predporozhny and Khatynnakh, but a little higher than the still living small Yakut village of Tyubeliakh or it is also called Chumpu-Kytyl, a rather large tributary of the Inyali flows into the Indigirka on the left, and almost opposite, on the right, a smaller river flows under the name Echenka. Predporozhny and Khatynnakh still belong to the Oymyakonsky ulus, but Tyubeliakh already belongs to Momsky. In this place, the Indigirka lays a steep loop, and the Inyali and Echenka valleys adjoin the Indigirka valley almost perpendicularly. They clearly developed along a tectonic fault crossing the Indigirka valley. And on all this intersection a space is created, stunning in its beauty. Particularly impressive is the wide-open valley of Inali, with mountains that seem to go somewhere into the distance. Prospecting artels are actively working along Inyali and Echenka, but gold is not the real property of these places. Primordial beauty is the real value.

In the summer of 2013, a flood occurred on Indigirka. The maximum level reached plus eight meters to low water. Almost all villages on the river were flooded. It so happened that it was at this time that I had a photo expedition to Indigirka. And it just so happened that the flood caught our little team at the entrance to the Indigirka Pipe gorge. The vast spit where we set up camp rapidly began to decrease and eventually became an island. There was nothing left but to flee on a catamaran. The muddy river carried tons of garbage, whole tree trunks jumped out of the water, threatening to drown us, and the steep and rocky banks of the gorge left no chance to land safely. Salvation was waiting for us at the mouth of the left tributary called Moldzhogoydoh. Here it was quite possible to moor and go ashore. We spent two days on Moljogoydokha until we waited for the moment when the first wave of flood subsided and the river stopped carrying garbage in such quantities. These two days were not in vain, the influx was very photogenic and gave a lot of interesting shots. And this peaceful photograph says nothing about what is happening on Indigirka itself.

The Indigirka River, along with the reservoirs of the neighboring Khabarovsk Territory, shows us the "classical" north of the Far East. Frozen land with larch taiga, forest tundra and arctic wasteland. The difference is that this water flow is the most turbulent in all of Yakutia (more than a third of the way is spent in high mountains). But in the lower reaches of the Indigirka it produces just the opposite impression - it is one of the most developed transport arteries of Yakutia. It remains to add: on these shores is the coldest settlement Russian Federation- Oymyakon Tomtor. And to the north, on the contrary, a little warmer.

general description

The Indigirka River is 1,726 km long. Its pool is 360,000 sq. km. The maximum width is in the estuary. 63 kilometers. Depths up to 11 m. The reservoir flows through 5 uluses of the Republic of Sakha (throughout Yakutia). Direction north. The average water flow is 1,570 cubic meters per second. Food - rain, melt and ice water. Freeze lasts from early October to late May. In some areas, ice remains even in July (at the latitude of permafrost). The flood begins in the last days of May. Continues in June. Seasonal changes in water level reach 11 m. There are about 100 tributaries (excluding streams). The largest are: Nera, Moma, Selennyakh, Badyarikha, Uyandina, Allaikha, Berellekh, Kuidusun, Kuente and Elgi.

The Indigirka River was formed simultaneously with the Yano-Oymyakon Highland and the Chersky Range. Almost all Paleolithic people disappeared during the last glaciation. Only a part of them passed on their genes to the ancestors of the Eveno-Evenks (in the upper reaches and in the central area) and the Yukaghirs (in the lower reaches). The hydronym is derived from "india gir", which translates from Evenki "people of the indie clan". Much to the south of the riverbed, at the turn of ancient and medieval history, a branch of the Xiongnu people penetrated into the Far East. Mixing with the natives, she formed the Yakuts. In the 17-18 centuries they conquer the reservoir. In the same period, a Russian description of the Indigirka River was made. The expedition of the Cossacks of Ivan Erastov was the first to visit. They were followed by "sovereign people" under the leadership of Stadukhin (they included the famous Semyon Dezhnev). Our ancestors realized that it only made sense to settle to the north of the Momskaya branch.

The mountain section of the water stream from hatred was nicknamed the Dog (or Devil's) River. The reasons will be clear to the reader below. The Chersky Ridge and the Yano-Oymyakon Highlands remained unconquered for about 250 years (before the start of the "gold rush"). An exception is the camp, which has now evolved into the urban settlement. Oymyakon. Far on the other side of the ridge. The so-called Okhotsk Route passed through it (it led to the Sea of ​​Okhotsk). Since the 17th century, the Indigirka River has been part of the Russian state. And at the beginning of the last century, industrial gold reserves were found on this reservoir. Tiny factories appear. Most are now gone. A smaller part are villages or even castles (only a few of them have marinas). The largest municipalities (Ust-Nera, Oymyakon) appear exclusively in Soviet times. Their history is connected with reindeer-breeding collective farms. Buildings on some branches appeared during the years of coal mining. The transport use of the Indigirka River began as early as the described 17th century. It continues today. However, all attempts to start a journey south of the Moma mouth always ended in tragedy. The most famous is connected with the death of the head of one of the scientific expeditions. In 1931. And in the lower half (from the connection with the Moma River to the mouth), the Indigirka River is currently passable for bulk carriers. There are no hydroelectric power stations and reserves on the banks of the hydrological object. Now they are open for any trade and any recreation. For example, fish is caught here on an industrial scale - in all sections of the channel.

Source and mouth of the Indigirka River

The source of the Indigirka River is located on the territory of the Oymyakonsky ulus of the Republic of Sakha. At around 792 meters above sea level. Inside the channel there are bare stone spits. Around it, on low ravines, there are larch forests. The source of the Indigirka River is a bundle of narrow channels in a channel 350 m wide, formed by the confluence of two streams, also divided into channels. They are called Tuora-Yuryakh and Taryn-Yuryakh. They run away from the northern macroslope of the Halkan Range. Its crest is the natural border of the specified autonomy with the Khabarovsk Territory. The new stream is already leaning to the northwest.

The mouth of the Indigirka River is its entrance to the East Siberian Sea. This is an estuary of several dozen channels. Their common channel is 63 kilometers wide (including Ularovskaya Bay). This refers to the Arctic wasteland frozen for many meters, ending in the ice of the East Siberian Sea. Geographically, we are talking about the Allaikhovsky ulus of the Yakut autonomy. A thin layer of snow and ice is visible here in summer.

Basin of the Indigirka River

At first, the Indigirka River moves in the mountains - 640 kilometers. After its “birth”, it immediately breaks into “threads” and moves strictly to the northwest. On the lowest part of the Yano-Oymyakon highland. The width of the common channel does not exceed 500-600 meters. However, some branches also freely extend inside the coastal edges. Because they almost do not rise above the water's edge. Here (as well as up to the forest-tundra) larch forests reign. Only the rocky islands are mostly bare, each with a few trees. Further, from Tyubeliakh, the course of the Indigirka River breaks through the Chersky Range, merging into a single stream, narrowing in some area to 200 meters. Stone ravines gradually become higher. At the end of the Great Gorge (Indigirskaya Pipe) they go down again. The depth sometimes reaches 11 meters. The flow speed is up to 20 km/h. The middle course of the Indigirka River begins at the exit from the Truba with a simultaneous entrance to a small section of the Momo-Selennyakh depression. The banks are slightly elevated. Here the taiga turns into the forest-tundra. And the river again scatters into many winding channels. Its diameter is steadily returning its parameter - 1,500 meters. After this lowland (circling the Momsky Range), the shores are equal to the water level.

Due to the many banks, the channel acquires a width of up to 3,000 meters in some places. This is the transition to the lower section of the Indigirka river basin. The site is called the Abyi lowland. It is characterized by a meeting (at the last stage) with a low Semiaxle ridge (large hills covered with tundra and stone bald mountains). Behind them begins the Yano-Indigirskaya lowland. Direct deep stretches 350-500 meters long appear. In the same spacious location, the Indigirka river basin is divided into 3 banks (Russian Mouth, Sredny and Kolyma). They give birth to their own river networks. The tundra smoothly turns into the arctic - poor in species composition and powdered with snow. On the rivieras, it is easy to notice thick ice. The end point of river traffic is described in the section above.

Sights of the river Indigirka

Exit to Kuidusun: the stele "Pole of Cold" and the bust of Lenin in the village of Tomtor

Here the Indigirka river comes into contact with the estuary of the Kuduysun stream. Moving along it (crossing idyllic landscapes) it is not difficult to get to the village of Tomtor in 3 hours on foot. In addition to replenishing supplies (civilization will not be lower for a long time), we recommend that you arrange a tour of this relatively small municipality. And it also often hosts the main Yakut holiday - Ysyaakh.

But it is known more for two tourist attractions - a tall shiny stele with a beautiful inscription "- 71.2" and a bust of Vladimir Ilyich with a fur Yakut hood. Nearby there is still Mount Ebe-Khaya - a sacred place for local Yakuts (and once Evenks) place. At the foot stands a shaman tree (a lone larch with multi-colored patches of fabric). Tomtor was made the center of the Second Borogon Nasleg. Rural settlement of Oymyakonsky ulus (district). His biography began simultaneously with the discovery of the eponymous deposit of rare earth metals in the years of the USSR. And later, in 1952-1953, the writer Varlam Shalamov arrived here in exile. In honor of people like him, a memorial was erected to the repressed (the Memory Bell). Let us explain that only 2 kilometers from Tomtor is the Oymyakon airport. But planes from Yakutsk do not fly here. Exclusively boards from nearby areas. And the building itself is missing. Just an airstrip and a car park. That is why they say that the coldest place is in Oymyakon (they simply fly to Tomtor through the Oymyakon airfield, and therefore the nearby land is incorrectly considered a suburb of the village of Oymyakon).

Oymyakon village

After some time, Oymyakon appears on the Indigirka River. From the Evenki toponym means "the place where the fish spends the winter." Arriving here, the Yakuts simply adopted this toponym. A tiny agglomeration is located on the left coast. In the hollow between the hills, into which cold air flows in winter. In a broad sense, all of it is referred to as "Oymyakon". The settlement is famous as the center of the festival of the northern peoples "Belt of Cold". Its history begins at the end of the 17th century. A Russian trading post was formed here, associated with receiving yasak from the Evenks, as well as fishing. After the Revolution, several collective farms united around these rural areas. Tomtor and Oymyakon constantly argued over the status of the "coldest" place. At the moment, they are still recognized as Tomtor. Woolly cows were bred in Oymyakon, ready to calmly survive the merciless winter and give good milk yields. In 1935, the mentioned patch on the map was headed by the 1st Borogonsky Nasleg. The sights of the tiny town are a whole complex of ice ... architecture. And a local history exposition, where they will tell you why Obruchev's expedition got stuck here. At the same time, handicrafts will be shown. We emphasize: this museum is also a hotel.

District center of Ust-Nera and Oymyakonskiye Kisilyakhi

A little lower on the Indigirka River, the protection of historical values ​​is more important than anywhere else. Ust-Nera (Ust-Nersk) and the surrounding Oymyakon surroundings abound in both natural and historical values. Let's start with the fact that this is the most populated place (5,000 inhabitants). And, despite the inappropriate name, it is precisely this administrative “capital” of the Oymyakonsky district (Oymyakon itself is only the second most important settlement). The reasons for the development lie in the strategic location. It is here that the R-504 "Kolyma" passes and only here planes from Yakutsk land. The population mainly consists of shift workers. And migrants in the first or third generations - the descendants of miners, gold miners, exiles and just romantics. Geologists and miners (personnel of mining plants) come to watch. The percentage of the aboriginal population is small. And it also has a complex national composition. The airport is located 15 km from the town. No public transport goes here. Taxis must be ordered before departure. It will wait patiently behind the airfield fence. But if you forgot to do this, but met a ride - rejoice.

Hitchhikers have never been abandoned here before. There is all the necessary infrastructure (including a drama theater with a unique wall painting and a whole bunch of shops) plus a museum of masterpieces of wooden architecture, as well as an exposition dedicated to the local "branch" of the Gulag. Photos, documents, personal items, interesting story tour guide. Entrance to both institutions is cheap. Recently, a WWII memorial complex consisting of stone boards and sculptures has appeared. Not far from him is another unusual Lenin. He is in a warm coat and leans painfully on a pile that encloses one of the playgrounds. But that's not all! Behind the described "playing ground" is the main museum - local history. It contains a rich paleontological collection, a set of minerals, archaeological rarities and artifacts associated with the same Gulag. Prison clothes, tools and much more. Visitors are waiting for several guest establishments of different categories.

The Oymyakon basin is surrounded by low elevations (hills). Some (those on the windward side) have been eroded to such an extent that they look like individual rocks or bizarre groups of rocks. The locals called them "kihchileeh". Their basis is the surviving slopes of the hill. Therefore, climbing to the foot of the Kisilyakhs is possible for mountain trekkers. Well, only climbers will get to the remnants themselves. They take ropes and crampons (an ice ax, of course, also does not hurt). Kisilyakhs, similar to figures, have long been proclaimed sacred. You can’t climb them (that is, beat them with an ice pick, scratch them with cats and drive hooks into the surface). Kisilyakhi - the threshold of the "portal" of the Indigirskaya Pipe (the border of the Oymyakon highlands and the Chersky ridge). The first ones can really be found right above the Ust-Nera. The latter are already at Chumbu-Kytyl (former Tyubeliakh). There they adjoin the ridge indicated above. The first variety has small specimens (3-5 meters), similar to honey mushrooms.

Indigirskaya Pipe (Big Gorge, Busik Rapids)

In this place, parking on the Indigirka River is impossible. And in general it is better to bypass the named corner side (in the mountains). It is in literally deadly to all living things that will be inside. The described water flow begins to pass behind the village of Tyubeliakh (Chumpu-Kytyl) in the highest mountain (“ridge”) part of the Chersky Range. And finishes - at the exit to the Momskaya lowland (crossing with the Moma valley). In a broad sense, the Pipe extends for about 100 kilometers. Throughout this extremely winding stretch: rapids above all possible categories (unsuitable even for extreme recreation), a pile of huge boulders and a current speed exceeding 20 kilometers per hour! The depth is sometimes 11 meters! The height of the rocky sides ranges from 21 to 200 meters! Rocks organically pass into sheds of layered rocks (formed in the era of existence at this point of the sea). The Great Gorge is divided into 3 episodes - in the first it narrows from 1.5 km to 200 m, in the second it expands to 500 m, in the third it enters the Chemalginsky (the most dangerous) massif, narrowing again (but only slightly). Stone majestic cliffs constantly alternate with screes. And only at the very end, on the edge of the ledges, you can see rare larches. One of the names of the tract (Busik Thresholds) is dedicated to the commander of the Soviet hydrographic expedition who died here in 1931. All researchers passing through here (starting from the 18th century) call the river "the most terrible in the entire Far East." And only because of the described section of the channel (after all, in all other parts it looks like dozens of others).

Site of the historical city of Zashiversk

The protection of the Indigirka River (or rather, its historical heritage) should be established here. One of the strongly protruding peninsulas of Indigirka (a natural shelter) is located in a place to the north of which the bare tundra begins. This is a couple of kilometers from the administrative border of the Abysky and Momsky uluses. Here, at the crossroads to the Kolyma, Anadyr and the Arctic Ocean, Zashiversk was once located. Now it can be determined only by the commemorative chapel. Archaeologists have already completed excavations, having found a whole series of evidence of almost 250 years of existence of the town. And if you land on land, you can see replicas of wooden idols, as well as a home-made meme from the same eco-friendly material. With an inscription. It all started with a prison, which was built by the "service people" of the detachment of Postnik Ivanov. They came from the upper reaches of the Yana (Verkhoyansk had already been built at that time). We decided to call the mini-city Zashiversk, since all the shivers of Indigirka pass already up to this point.

Until 1700, the old agglomeration was rebuilt several times. She managed to visit the place where yasak was collected from the Yukaghirs (here, on the border of the settlement of Evenks and Yukaghirs, storehouses were built). "Fur" trading post. Parish of the Transfiguration Church. It was built of larch, without a single nail. And later it will be dismantled and transported to Novosibirsk. In the 18th century, the place began to quickly grow into tenements. In the middle of this century, the town was re-planned. From 1798 it already had more advanced rectangular fortifications. By Far Eastern standards, many people lived here - merchants, bourgeois, peasants, as well as local hunters, reindeer herders, and fishermen. In the century before last, the settlement grew even more. But in 1883 it was completely exterminated by smallpox. The epidemic arose so rapidly that no one was saved.

Belaya Gora village

Later, rafting on the Indigirka River will lead the water traveler to the municipality, which has already grown up among the tundra landscape. Belaya Gora is the last hill. And at the same time the point from which the transition zone begins. This is where the freeze-up lingers. The conversation is about the border of the subarctic and arctic climate. Even in June, the trees (planted on the village streets) do not show leaves. But there is a whole minimum of infrastructure. Including even the fire station. Belaya Gora is the center of the Abyisky ulus. It appeared only in 1974. Before that, there was a village called Druzhina. Today it has such transport terminals as a pier and an airport. As well as industrial facilities - an oil depot and a greenhouse. At the reservoir, both banks are interesting. On the village stands a stele in honor of the sailors of the river fleet - the only attraction.

Chokurdakh settlement and natural park "Kytalyk"

On this fragment, the course of the Indigirka River is completely in the Arctic zone. Most of the year it is not driven by snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles. Starting from this conditional strip, the ice breaks up rather late and stays for a relatively short time. By left hand grew p.g.t. Chokuurdaakh. Founded in November 1936 as a maritime transport hub, as well as a place of compact residence of the so-called Russo-Ustyintsy. Sub-ethnic group of the Russian people, distinguished by direct origin from the first settlers of the first third of the 17th century. They have preserved a lot of vocabulary about the customs of that time, which are inherited. According to anthropology, they are mestizos (have Mongoloid features). They are close to the Yakuts and Yukaghirs in terms of housekeeping. The founders of this clan are the Cossacks Ivan Rebrov and Ivan Perfiriev, who came here in 1633. The first opened the mouth of the Indigirka 3 years later. Such people also live in the Russian Ustye and in Chokurdakh. After 56 kilometers of the waterway, the river splits into 3 banks. Here is the winter season. There is a mini airfield.

As said, downstream is a river estuary. Part of it received the status of a natural park. This space is called "Kytalyk". It is only being organized, not yet having clear boundaries. Its main goal will be ecotourism. Here you can go in for birdwatching - watch the pink gull, the roaring swan, the white-billed loon and rare herons. Nearby are more prosaic geese, ducks and sandpipers. From mammals you will come across ermine, arctic fox, weasel and wolverine. Reindeer, white hare, polar wolf and introduced musk ox. And it's not just about nature. For example, in the tundra near the Russian Ustye, the world's northernmost Orthodox church. In education national park even international organizations are interested.

Tourism and recreation on the river Indigirka

The Indigirka River is located within the boundaries of the cold zone continental climate, but its “finish” is in the subarctic and even partially in the arctic climatic zones. In the Arctic wasteland, even in summer, only winter activities are available - reindeer and dog sledding, as well as ice fishing. The forest-tundra and tundra lying to the south are ready to offer multicolor in the warm season. rare plants. And, on the contrary, in the upper taiga in July, hiking in the forest with all the accompanying leisure activities is possible - picking berries and mushrooms, hunting and classic fishing. You can safely stand up with tents.

Mountain trekking, and at the same time a speleological trip with tents along the Indigirka River are quite appropriate. The first half of the waterway washed its way into the Yano-Oymyakon highlands and the Chersky ridge (the easternmost place in Russia, where there are still “three-thousand-meter” mountains). That is, there is where to climb. There are places to do base jumping or hang gliding. At your service are Mount Pobeda (3,003), the Suntar-Khayata massif (applies only to the sources), the Khalkan, Momsky and Chemalginsky ridges, the Porozhny and Semi-Axis ridges, the Kyuellyakh-Mustakh mountain junction (with a popular waterfall), as well as the caves of the Oymyakon Plateau. As for the latter, they are also found on the smaller Nersky plateau. The most interesting ones are deployed simultaneously in all massifs: locals sometimes notice chuchuns in them. These yeti are also called the word "mulen". Like, they attack wanderers who have climbed into the mountains.

Once upon a time, these archaic hominids attacked even settlements on the river. But over time, they realized: the advantage in strength is not on their side. Tourists are not brought here. Extremes are here.

Air recreation on the Indigirka River consists in transportation to settlements on its banks. In any case, you will need the services of small aircraft. Ust-Nera now provides a paraglider. Pilgrimage and event holidays on the Indigirka River are associated with the settlements of Ust-Nera and Oymyakon. The first one is the only one on the river coast, through which a large highway (R-504 Yakutsk-Magadan) passes. The second is intersected by the intra-regional highway Oymyakon-Tomtor. Upstream is the Old Kolyma tract. All other villages communicate with major cities by air. In Ust-Nera there is the Assumption Church - a place of attraction for Orthodox from all over the Indigirie. Every year, Oymyakon hosts the multinational festival "The Belt of Cold", which demonstrates pagan rituals, folk costumes and authentic fun from 4 peoples inhabiting the eastern third of Yakutia. Yakuts, Evenks, Evens and Yukagirs. The event has the status of "ethno-tourist". It is usually held in the last days of March, as it is associated with the spring rite of rebirth of life. After the winter "death". Do not forget that the Oymyakon basin is the coldest of the inhabited settlements (at the height of winter, the thermometer drops to minus 71.2). Chyskhaan - Yakut Santa Claus. He always acts as the host of the festival. However, in the ceremonial part, the event is presented more geographically. And here (directly from Veliky Ustyug) comes a representative of the Slavic winter with an assistant, the Snow Maiden. And also Pakkaine from Karelia, Yamal-Iri from the Yamal Peninsula, Saagan Ubgan from Buryatia, Kysh Babai from Tatarstan (with his daughter Kar Kyzy), as well as the Lapland Joulupukki. Mandatory points are the choice of Miss Frost Belt and a sample of the delights of the cuisine of different northern nationalities. Round dance. Competitions and sports competitions. Dancing with shamans. If you like it, come to a purely Yakut holiday. Ysyah. He looks like.

Rafting on the Indigirka River is an exciting activity. But only to Tyubeliakh or, on the contrary, already beyond the Thresholds of Busik. The reason for this was stated in the chapter above. Get on the water at Oymyakon. The current is quite fast, and the river "body" is sometimes so shallow that you can simply walk along it. Several kilometers. Choosing one of the channels Further rafting along the Indigirka River is accessible through quite surmountable rifts and rapids (by the way, category ones). Move so to the very Tyubelakh. Pros can raft much higher - from the very bridge of the road Tomtor - Myaunja. There are loans. But you will have to drag the raft. Wave the oars on the clamps too! Now about the second rafting route. From the location located at the intersection with the Momskaya Valley, it is really possible to walk to the very estuary. And, choosing one of the 2 main channels, go to the East Siberian Sea (like many of our fearless ancestors). Here the river is more like a lowland. The only "but" is a very confusing sailing direction, consisting of sleeves.

Fishing and hunting on the Indigirka river

Fishermen know a lot of fish from the Indigirka River. Fishing will bring you to:

• pike;
• chirom;
• grayling;
• taimen;
• Lenkom;
• muksun;
• burbot;
• vendace;
• peled;
• several varieties of crucian carp;
• carp;
• perch.

On the Indigirka River, fishing is successful anywhere. There are no reservations prohibited for the fisherman. As well as fish - on some dangerous fragments of the upper reaches (it simply cannot climb to many points of the channel). Fishing on the Indigirka River will introduce you to the "Red Book" fish. She should be released. It's about about Siberian sturgeon, chum salmon, lamprey, arctic char (seruk) and sculpin. However, they were not seen here at all. The difference between Indigirka fishing is that many representatives of the ichthyofauna cannot be caught on spinning or float gear. They are too large and powerful - they easily tear the line. Locals use it for catching burrows. The indigenous population feeds only dogs with perches and carps (Kukuchans) ...

This is the kind of excitement that the Indigirka River provides guests with. Fishing, by the way, can be combined with hunting. Goose, duck (longtail duck and pintail), capercaillie, black grouse, scoter (prohibited in some places), ptarmigan, tundra partridge and arctic partridge are available for shooting. Hazel grouse in dense taiga, near the source. Of the mammals - arctic fox, bighorn sheep (in the mountains), deer (in the mountains). Further sable, white hare, squirrel, ermine, Siberian weasel and arctic fox. And behind them are a lynx, a wolverine, an elk, a fox and a wolf (only the very upper reaches). Roe deer and red deer can only cross the upper reaches (very limited). The local fauna of the Red Book is the reindeer (available as prey only to the nomadic peoples of the north). Also musk deer, manul, leather, European otter and arctic fox. Then a flying squirrel polar bear, lemming, flying birds of prey and owls. The same list includes the inhabitants of swamps and lakes - all kinds of herons, swans, cranes and storks. The ban on hunting exists in the area of ​​the Arctic coast - the listed populations of the Red Book live on it.

Protection of the Indigirka River

The protection of the Indigirka River is not so urgent yet. An assessment of the ecological state of the mentioned hydrological object refers it to the class of "low pollution". Although back in 2008 the water was characterized as "very polluted". Currently yearly reset Wastewater fixed by far not the most critical parameter. The presented problem is more related to the destructiveness of the flood. Heavy rains are the cause of water disasters (melt waters show stable dynamics). Several times, Ust-Nera, Oymyakon and the section of the Kolyma highway closest to them were subjected to a serious attack by the elements. Earthen dams were erected.

The description of the Indigirka River presented to you shows all its natural highlights and recreational opportunities. And even some problems. Come.

Indigirka- a Russian river flowing through the territory of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). Refers to

It flows from south to north. The river originates at the confluence of the Taryn-Yuryakh and Tuora-Yuryakh rivers flowing from the Halkan Range. Not far from the village of Orto-Balagan, Oymyakonsky district of the Republic of Yakutia. Then it flows through the Momsky and Abysky regions and 120 km from the village of Oyotung in the Allaikhovsky region of Yakutia flows into the East Siberian Sea.

Settlements.
Oymyakonsky district: Orto-Balagan, Crossing, Yurdya Bank, Chagachannakh, Tyumsu, Tarynnakh, Chervovo, Teryut, Taryn, Lesnaya, Birch, Nersky, Ust-Nera, Zakharenko, Autumn, Predporozhny.
Momsky district: Sobolokh, Kumakh-Sysy, Khonu, Buor-Sysy, Ymyyakhtakh, Kulun-Elbut.
Abyisky district: Krest-Mayor, Druzhina, Suturuokha.
Allaikhovsky district: Ozhogino, Pokhvalny, Vorontsovo, Olenegorsk, Shamanovo, Kotenko, Chokurdakh, Oyotung.

The largest settlements are Chokurdakh, Belaya Gora, Khonuu, Ust-Nera, Oymyakon.

Main piers: Tabor, Chokurdakh, Druzhina, Khonuu.

Routes (access roads).
You can get to the river along the M56 Yakutsk-Magadan highway and along the Kadykchan-Ust-Nera road.

main tributaries.
In the upper reaches, the Indigirka River receives large tributaries:
on the right is the river Nera.
on the left - the Kuydusun river, the Kuente river, the Elgi river.

In the lower reaches, the Indigirka River receives large tributaries:
on the right - the Moma River, the Badyarikha River.
on the left - the Selennyakh river, the Uyandina river, the Allaikha river, the Berelyokh river.

Smaller tributaries of the Indigirka River:
on the right: Chubukalah, Chiya, Nelkan, Echenka, Hatys-Yuryakh, Tikhon-Yuryakh, Ilin-Eselyakh, Berelekh, Dakhatekha, Berezovka, Uchyugey,
left: Achchygyi-Chagachannah, Ulakhan-Chagachannah, Tyi-Yuryakh, Sarylakh, Volchan, Inyali, Taskan, Ytabyt-Yuryakh, Tirekhtyakh, Arga-Yuryakh, Kieng-Yuryakh, Talbykchan.

Relief and soils.
The source of the river is the slopes of the Halkan Range. After the confluence of the Taryn-Yuryakh and Tuora-Yuryakh rivers, the Indigirka flows along the lower part of the Oymyakon Highlands, then cuts through a number of mountain ranges of the Chersky Range. Then it crosses the Chemalginsky Range. Above the mouth of the Moma River, the Indigirka flows through the Momo-Selennyakh depression. Having rounded the Momsky Range, the Indigirka River flows through a low-lying plain. Then it flows along the Abyiskaya and Yano-Indigirskaya lowlands.
The basin of the Indigirka River is located in an area of ​​permafrost rocks, as a result of which the formation of huge icings is typical for the river.
The soils near the river near the village of Vorontsovo are of alluvial origin, since the Indigirka River during the flood carries many small plant particles of exactly the characteristic morphology.

Vegetation.
The territory of Yakutia, through which the Indigirka River flows, lies practically from the southern to the northern border of the republic. Yakutia is within the four geographical areas: taiga forests (80% of the republic's area), tundra, forest tundra and arctic desert.

hydrological regime.
The length of the river is 1726 km. The catchment area is 360 thousand km². The average water flow near Ust-Nera is 428 m³/s. Maximum flow 10,600 m³/s. Near the village of Vorontsovo from 1,570 m³/s to 11,500 m³/s. The range of water level fluctuations is from 7.5 to 11.2 m. The maximum water level is in June - early July.

According to the structure of the river bed, the speed of the flow and the structure of the valley, Indigirka is conditionally divided into two sections: the upper mountain section, 640 km long, and the lower plain, 1086 km long. After the Chersky ridge, the width of the valley is from 500 m to 20 km, there are many shivers, the channel is pebbly, the speed of the current is 2-3.5 m/s. When crossing the Chemalginsky ridge, the Indigirka flows in a deep gorge and forms rapids, the flow velocity here is 4 m/s. In the Momo-Selennyakh depression, the lower section of the river begins. The Indigirka valley widens in it, the channel with shoals and spits, in some places branches into branches. In the Abyi lowland, the river winds a lot. On the Yano-Indigirka lowland, the Indigirka is characterized by straight long stretches, the width of which is 350-500 m. At 130 km from the mouth, the Indigirka is divided into tributaries (Russian mouth, Sredny, Kolyma) and forms a delta with an area of ​​5,500 km². The mouth of the Indigirka River is separated from the East Siberian Sea by a shallow sandbank.

The nutrition of Indigirka is rain, snow, glacial and icy.
High water occurs during the warm part of the year. The river is covered with ice in October, opens in late May - early June. Indigirka is considered the most cold river on the planet. Winter in this area is very severe. In winter, the average air temperature is minus 50 and the river freezes through.

Ichthyofauna.
The Indigirka River is rich in fish. The species composition of the ichthyofauna of the river includes about 29 species of fish. Fishing for whitefish, vendace, nelma, whitefish, whitefish, omul, and burbot is carried out in the mouth. The main commercial fish are the omul, vendace and whitefish, the catch of which in 2000 was 28.6% of the total catch of these species in the rivers of Yakutia. Fishing is concentrated mainly in the delta and near-delta sections of the river.

In addition to the main commercial fish, the river is inhabited by such endangered species as:

Siberian sturgeon, which comes across from Primorye to locality Cross Major and sometimes reaches Zashiversk. In the river delta, this fish is found in the Russko-Ustyenskaya channel. The population is low and has a pronounced tendency to decrease. The Siberian sturgeon is endangered. In catches, sexually mature individuals are rare. The Indigirka and Kolyma sturgeon populations are included in the Red Book of the North far east Russia".

Nelma fish in Indigirka is found up to the Kuidusun River. Its numbers have dwindled to a critical level.

The Siberian vendace lives from the seaside to the village of Krest-Mayor, and also enters many tributaries of the Indigirka. The number over the past 10 years has decreased by 78 times compared to the beginning of fishing. The Indigirka and Kolyma populations are included in the Red Book of the North of the Far East of Russia.

Spawning grounds for whitefish (genus - whitefish) are located in the lower reaches of the river. According to the results of observations and analysis of the state of the Indigirka population of whitefish, it was repeatedly noted that in order to increase the number of whitefish, it is necessary to introduce a complete ban on its catch.

The least studied fish in the river are chum salmon and pink salmon. These are walk-through salmon fish coming to spawn. Pink salmon is found in the river singly and not annually. Spawning is autumn, the fecundity of 1 specimen is approximately equal to 2.9 thousand eggs.

Attractions, tourism and recreation.
Currently, Indigirka is one of the main waterways in the North-East of Russia. The north pole of cold is located on Indigirka - the village of Oymyakon. Near the river is the city-monument Zashiversk. Rafting and fishing are popular on the river.

Reference Information.

Length: 1726 km.
Basin area: 360,000 km².
Basin: East Siberian Sea.
Source: confluence of the Taryn-Yuryakh and Tuora-Yuryakh rivers.
Location: Halkan Ridge
Coordinates: 63°4′9.9″ s. sh., 144°12′56.45″ E d.
Mouth: East Siberian Sea
Location: 120 km from the village of Oyotung in the Allaikhovskiy district of Yakutia.
Coordinates: 71°18′25.21″ s. sh., 150°29′3.48″ E d.

The river, more than 1.7 thousand km long, with its source at the junction of two rivers flowing through the territory of the Yakutsk region (Sakha Yakutia) to the East Siberian Sea, flowing into it with four mouths, is the Indigirka.

The name of the Indigirka River comes from the Even "Indei", which means "hello", "live"; "Indigir" is an ancient family of Evens who lived on the banks of the river.

According to Russian documents of the 17th century, the river passed as Indiger or Indigir.

Indigirka characteristic of the river

Where is the river Indigirka

This is a cold, amazing river that flows among the snows to the Arctic Ocean, where it flows into four mouths, the eastern one is called the Kolyma, and the western mouth is called the Russian.

Indigirka, source and mouth, basin

The source of the Indigirka, as mentioned above, is at the junction of the two Yakut rivers Tuora-Yurakh and Taryn-Yuryakh, which run from the slope of the Halkan mountain range.

According to the structure, the Indigirka River is divided into two sections: the mountainous upper and the flat lower, which is twice as long as the first.

In the upper reaches of the Indigirka, it is a fast river with many rifts. The most dangerous area is considered to be the "Indigirskaya pipe".

In this place, the river seems to be squeezed between the rocks, among which it runs along the mountain range for about 100 kilometers. Where the Indigirka runs through the mountains, it is absolutely impassable.

In the lower reaches, the river is slow, monotonous and has a width of 300 to 800 meters.

Starting from the confluence of the Moma River, the Indigirka is navigable, then it diverges into branches, where rafting is carried out, and forms a delta.

The Indigirka River is fed by rain, snow and glaciers.

It is covered with ice in early October, and opens only in June. The Indigirka is the coldest river on our planet!

Settlements on Indigirka

The village of Oymyakon is located on the river, the so-called northern pole of cold, which competes for this title with Verkhoyansk, where the temperature in winter drops to minus fifty.

Zashiversk is a city-monument that died out in the 19th century from smallpox.

The main piers on the Indigirka River: Druzhina; Honuu; Camp; Chokurdakh

The main tributaries of the Indigirka

These are the rivers:

• Cuente;
• Nera;
• Moma;
• Elgi;
• Kuidusun;
• Badyarikha;
• Allah;
• Uyandina;
• Boreloh;
• Selennyakh.

Indigirka fishing

The Indigirka basin is a very rich region. Gold is still being mined here, and the shores are a haven for amateur fishermen.

These places are famous for fish species, among which are rudd, catfish, roach, burbot, omul, nelma, muksun, whitefish, and vendace.

The Indigirka River on the map of Russia

In summer, the Indigirka River is one of the most popular objects among tourists and travelers.

Fascinating excursions and trips along the Siberian rivers!