Every second city in Europe is built by the river. And this is not accidental, because it has always been the main factor in the growth of the agglomeration. We love to spend our holidays on the banks of this water stream, admiring the beauty of the surrounding landscape. But do not even think about how long they can be. It's time to fill the knowledge gap: from this article you will find out what are the longest rivers in Europe.
10. Vyatka (1314 km)
Vyatka, opening the rating of the longest in Europe, has a length of 1314 km, originates from the Verkhnekamsk Upland located in the Republic of Udmurtia. The mouth flows into the Kama - the fifth longest river in Europe (but we still get to it). It has a pool area of 129,000 square meters. kilometers.
Vyatka is considered a river of the East European plain with great tortuosity. Used for shipping and alloys. But river routes go only to the city of Kirov (700 km from the mouth).
The river is rich in fish stocks: residents regularly catch pike, perch, roach, zander, etc.
On the banks of the Vyatka are the cities of Kirov, Sosnovka, Orlov.
- Countries through which flows: Russia.
9. Dniester (1352 km)
The source of the river is 1352 km long, located in the village of Volchye, Lviv region. Dniester flows into the Black Sea. The river flows through the territories of Ukraine and Moldova. The borders of these countries in some part run precisely along the Dniester. The cities of Rybnitsa, Tiraspol, Bender are founded on the river. The pool area is 72,100 square meters. kilometers.
After the collapse of the USSR, shipping on the Dniester decreased, and in the past decade it practically disappeared. Now on the river, included in the list of the longest in Europe, only small boats and sightseeing boats go.
- Countries through which flows: Ukraine, Moldova.
8. Oka (1498 km)
Oka considered the right tributary of the Volga, which is its mouth. The source is located in an ordinary spring, located in the village of Aleksandrovka, Orel Region. The length of the river is 1498 km.
Cities: Kaluga, Ryazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Murom are on the Oka. On the river, included in the ranking of the longest in Europe, the ancient city of Divyagorsk was once built. Now Oka, whose basin area is 245,000 square meters. kilometers, washed it off by almost 90%.
Navigation on the river, due to its gradual shallowing, is unstable. It was suspended in 2007, 2014, 2015. This also affected the number of fish in the river: its slow extinction began.
- Countries through which flows: Russia.
7. Pechora (1809 km)
Pechora 1809 km long flows through the Komi Republic and the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, flowing into the Barents Sea. Pechora takes its source in the north of the Urals. Cities such as Pechora and Naryan-Mar were built near the river.
The river is navigable, but river routes pass only to the city of Troitsko-Pechorsk. Fishing is developed: salmon, whitefish, vendace are caught.
Pechora, ranking seventh in the ranking of the longest in Europe, is known for having 322,000 square meters of water in its pool. kilometers, there are deposits of oil and gas, as well as coal.
- Countries through which flows: Russia.
6. Don (1870 km)
Starting from the Central Russian Upland, Don flows into the Sea of Azov. Many believe that the source of the Don is located in the Shat reservoir. But this is not so. The river starts from the Urvanka stream, which is located in the city of Novomoskovsk.
Don is a navigable river, the basin of which is 422,000 square meters. kilometers. You can swim along it from the beginning of the mouth (Sea of Azov), to the city of Liski. On the river, included in the rating of the longest (1870 km), cities such as Rostov-on-Don, Azov, Voronezh were founded.
Significant pollution of the river led to a reduction in fish stocks in it. But it is still enough: about 67 species of fish live in the Don. Perch, rudd, pike, bream and roach are considered the most caught.
- Countries through which flows: Russia.
5. Kama (1880 km)
This river with a length of more than 1880 km is the main one in the Western Urals. Source Kama originates near the village of Karpushata, which is located in the Upper Kayem Upland. The river flows into the Kuibyshev reservoir, from where the Volga flows - the longest river in Europe.
It is worth notingthat 74,718 rivers are located in the Kama basin, which is 507,000 square meters. More than 90% of them have a length of just over 10 km.
Many people think that the Kama and Volga are one. This is a wrong judgment: Kama is much older than the Volga. Before the Ice Age, the mouth of this river was part of the Caspian Sea, and the Volga was a tributary of the Don River. The ice sheet changed everything: now the Volga has become a large tributary of the Kama.
- Countries through which flows: Russia.
4. Dnipro (2201 km)
This river is considered the longest in Ukraine and the fourth longest in Russia (2201 km). Except Nezalezhnaya, Dnieper affects the territories of Russia and Belarus. The source is located on the Valdai Hills. The Dnieper flows into the Black Sea. Millionaire cities such as Dnepropetrovsk and Kiev are based on the river.
It is believed that the Dnieper is very slow and calm. The pool area is 504,000 square meters. The river is home to over 60 species of fish. People hunt carp, herring, sturgeon. Also, the Dnieper is rich in numerous species of algae. The most common are green. But diatoms, golden, cryptophytic also prevail.
- Countries through which flows: Ukraine, Russia, Belarus.
3. Ural (2420 km)
Its current Ural (named after the geographic region of the same name), takes from the top of Kruglyaya Sopka in Bashkortostan. It passes through the territory of Russia, Kazakhstan and flows into the Caspian Sea. It has a length of more than 2420 km.
It is believed that the Urals separates the geographical zones of Asia and Europe. But this is not entirely true: only the upper part of the river is the line dividing Eurasia. Cities such as Orenburg and Magnitogorsk were built in the Urals.
On the river, which received a “bronze” rating of the longest rivers in Europe, few ships sail. They mainly go fishing, because the Urals is famous for its abundance of fish. Sturgeon, catfish, pike perch, stellate sturgeon are caught here. The area of the river basin is 231,000 square meters. kilometers.
- Countries through which flows: Russia, Kazakhstan.
2. Danube (2950 km)
Danube - the first in length in the Western part of the Old World (more than 2950 km). But it is still inferior to our Volga, ranking second in the ranking of the longest rivers in Europe.
The source of the Danube is in the Black Forest mountains, which are located in Germany. It falls into the Black Sea. Famous European capitals: Vienna, Belgrade, Bratislava and Budapest were built near this river. Included in the list of UNESCO as a protected object. It has a pool area of 817,000 square meters. kilometers.
- Countries through which flows: Germany, Austria, Croatia, Serbia, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Ukraine.
1. Volga (3530 km)
Almost everyone in our country knows that Volga - The longest river in Russia. But few people guess - in Europe it is also in the first place. The river, with a length of 3,530 kilometers, starts from the Valdai Upland, and ends with the distant Caspian Sea. Million-plus cities such as Nizhny Novgorod, Volgograd, Kazan were built on the Volga. The area of the river (1,361,000 sq. Kilometers) is approximately equal to 30% of the European territory of our country. Volga passes through 15 subjects of Russia. It is home to over 70 species of fish, of which 40 are suitable for fishing.
- Countries through which flows: Russia.