Today it’s hard to find places on the map that civilization has not touched. However, they exist. Such reserved corners include the amazing Siberian river Olenek, located in the northwestern part of Yakutia.
River source, direction and mouth
Olenek takes its beginning on the slopes of Mount Yankan, in the Krasnoyarsk Territory. From there, the river carries its waters towards the east, gradually changing course to the northeast. On its way, which is 2270 kilometers, it first crosses the Central Siberian Plateau, which is characterized by lowerings and rises to 600 meters. Here the river is quite winding, has many rapids and rifts. Among them, the most famous and impassable is Ukoyan. Then the river flows along the hilly tundra plain. The main part of its basin, with a total area of more than 200 thousand square kilometers, is located beyond the Arctic Circle. The mouth of the Olenek River is located in the Gulf of Olenek, which belongs to the Laptev Sea. It forms a delta, the area of which is 475 square kilometers.
The northern part of the territory where Olenek flows, belongs to the Arctic climatic zone, and the rest of it belongs to the subarctic. A feature of these zones is the large annual temperature amplitudes and too little rainfall. For example, for the whole winter they drop out only from 20 to 40 millimeters. The snow covering the river basin is loose, without infusion, since there are practically no thaws here.
Unusually picturesque places are found where the Olenek River makes sharp turns. Here cliffs rise along the banks, reminiscent of sheer walls, pillars and obelisks. In the upper reaches, the bottom and banks of the river are covered with pebbles. And after the accession of a large tributary of the Arga-Sala, sandbanks and islets are more common in the expanded channel.
Hydrology
The regime of the Olenek River is determined by the climatic conditions of the region through which it flows. Like all rivers of Siberia, the Far East, Olenek has a summer flood, which is observed from June to September. It feeds mainly on rains falling in the summer, and meltwater. Water consumption averages 1210 cubic meters. m / s
Due to the special climate in the area where the Olenyok River is located in its upper reaches, the reservoir systematically freezes from January to April. In the lower reaches, this period is longer - from the second half of September until the end of May.
Permanent permafrost in the Olenek river basin has a great influence on the temperature of the water, which is marked as very close to zero between September and the end of May. The average annual temperature is 3.4 degrees. The maximum thickness of the ice that Olenek River covers from autumn to spring is 244 cm. And this is already a fairly serious indicator. On the territory of the Vilyui plateau, from where the Olenyok River originates, there is permafrost, the length of which is more than one and a half kilometers.
Main tributaries
Of all the tributaries, the largest is Arga-Sala, which flows 1528 km from the mouth and is the boundary of the upper course of the Olenek River. The length of Arga-Sala is 554 kilometers. This river flows mainly along the Central Siberian plateau, formed by the confluence of two rivers (Right and Left Arga-Sala), and is characterized by an abundance of rapids. It takes its beginning almost in the same place as the source of the Olenyok River, only to the left.
The second largest tributary is the Bur River, which is closer to the mouth. Its length is about 500 kilometers. After the confluence of this tributary, Olenek runs northwest along the Chekanovsky ridge. Siligir River is the right tributary of the Olenek River in the middle course (length 344 kilometers), which is also considered one of the largest. Formed by the confluence of the rivers Usuk-Siligir and Orto-Siligir. Other tributaries (Unukit, Birekte, Beenchime, Kuyoka and others), although considered large, have a significantly smaller length and area of the basin.
Flora and fauna of the river valley
Almost throughout the territory where the Olenyok River flows, the vegetation is rather sparse and does not differ in variety. It is represented mainly by sparse deciduous forests. On the slopes of the valleys, the light forest becomes denser. Occasionally there are areas occupied by birch, talnik or vine. In drained areas, deciduous forests are diluted with spruce. Trees here can reach a height of up to 12 meters.
Grassy vegetation is a rarity. The main space of the lower river is the bare tundra, which is covered with reindeer moss, slanka and lichen. In addition, a shrub layer is also developed, represented by Ledum, blueberry, bearberry, etc. Lingonberry, rosehip, redcurrant and juniper are less common.
Of the animals, reindeer, wolves, ermines, foxes and hares are found almost everywhere near the river. But reptiles in this area are not found at all.
River fish
Characterization of the Olenek River notes factors that determined the distribution of ichthyofauna in such a way that cyprinids are almost completely absent here. There are several reasons for this - this is the temperature regime, and the limited number of places suitable for breeding, as well as a large number of predators.
In total, the river has 27 different species of fish. Of these, a considerable number of valuable ones are taimen, nelma, whitefish, lenok. They are common throughout the Olenek River. Often you can meet pike, perch, burbot. Passing fish - vendace, omul, muksun, pyzhyan come to a section of the river closer to the mouth. The pride of the Olenek River is taimen. Some specimens reach huge sizes and weights of 30–40 kilograms.
Rafting on the Olenyok River
The upper reaches of the river, where there are many suitable places for fishing, are often used for rafting on catamarans, kayaks and kayaks. The most favorable time for this comes in June, in high water. In multiple rifts with a strong current, fish is very well caught. The site where rafting is possible (from the mouth of the tributary of Alakit to the village of Olenek) is very picturesque thanks to rocky cliffs and outliers.
All this attracts a lot of outdoor enthusiasts. When rafting, it is recommended to go near steep shores, while constantly monitoring the depth. The bottom is easy to see anywhere, as the water in the river is crystal clear. Observance of all safety measures is the most important condition. In these deserted places one does not have to rely on someone else's help.
