Perlovska river ( bg, Перловска река) is a small
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
in the
Sofia Valley
The Sofia Valley ( bg, Софийска котловина, Sofiyska kotlovina), or Sofia Field ( bg, Софийско поле, Sofiysko pole, link=no), is a valley in central western Bulgaria bordering Stara Planina to the northeast, the Viskya ...
in western
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
. The river is only long. It takes its source from the foothills of
Vitosha
Vitosha ( bg, Витоша ), the ancient ''Scomius'' or ''Scombrus'', is a mountain massif, on the outskirts of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. Vitosha is one of the symbols of Sofia and the closest site for hiking, alpinism and skiing. Conveni ...
, runs through
Sofia
Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...
's
South Park
''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...
, separates the two lanes of
Evlogi Georgiev Boulevard
Evlogi and Hristo Georgievi Boulevard ( bg, Булевард Евлоги и Христо Георгиеви, usually referred to simply as ''Evlogi Georgiev'', which was its name for most of the 20th Century) is an important boulevard in the Bulga ...
, runs through the neighbourhood
Poduyane
Poduyane ( bg, Подуяне ) or Poduene ( ) is a residential complex and a district of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria with 85,996 inhabitants. It is located in the northeastern outskirts of the city and is divided into microregions. Poduyane co ...
, and finally flows into the
Iskar River
The Iskar ( bg, Искър, ; la, Oescus) is a right tributary of the Danube. With a length of 368 km it is the longest river that runs entirely within Bulgaria.[Orlov Most
Eagles' Bridge ( bg, Орлов мост, ''Orlov most'' ) is a bridge over the Perlovska River in downtown Sofia, capital of Bulgaria.''Travel Sofia: Illustrated Guide, Phrasebook and Maps'', MobileReference, 2010 The bridge and junction where it ...]
is built over this river.
Geographical characteristics
Perlovska springs from the villa zone of Dragalevtsi, crosses the Ring Road, connects the new neighborhoods, parallel to Bulgaria Boulevard, and then crosses the South Park. Under the Bulgaria Boulevard, the Boyana River flows into it and both go out into the open at Evlogi and Hristo Georgievi Blvd. From there Perlovska becomes a canal. In the city the course of the river is completely corrected, in places underground. It flows to the left into the Iskar River at 513 m above sea level, 1.2 km northeast of the Obradov Monastery.
Other interpretations of the name "Pearl River" are also widespread. For example, on a map made in GIS Sofia,
[{{cite web, url=http://www.gis-sofia.bg/uploads/gallery/original/bc5c7d497d7b3858cd25ea960ea231a4206be2d5.jpg, title=Transverse profiles of rivers. GIS-Sofia EOOD, 2015., accessdate=10 August 2016] the Perlovska River includes the Boyana River as its initial part, but does not include the river flowing through the South Park (the map does not indicate the name of the river in question, but in many other sources it is called Drenovichka).
The Perlovska River is one of the few small and short rivers that pass through Sofia. It crosses the city along the capital's Evlogi Georgiev Boulevard. A famous landmark of the Perlovska River is the Eagle Bridge, where Tsarigradsko Shosse begins. The river is also the northern border of Lozenets. The Perlovska River also crosses one of the largest parks in Sofia - the South Park. In the colloquial language of the people of Sofia, the river is also known as the "canal", which is reflected in derivative names such as the Small City Theater "Behind the canal".
Hydrological data
The catchment area of the river is 257 km², which represents 3.0% of the catchment area of the Iskar River. The largest tributary is the Vladayska River (left).
The maximum outflow is in the months of April-June, due to the snowmelt in Vitosha, and the minimum - August-October.
Formally, the river is the fourth largest (high water) tributary of the Iskar River (after Malki Iskar, Lesnovska and Iskretska rivers), into which it flows after receiving the waters of the Boyanska, Slatinska and Vladayska rivers.
Gallery
File:Perlovska reka South Park Sofia.jpg, The Pearl River in the South Park
File:Perlovets.jpg, The river before Bulgaria Blvd.
File:Perlovska river, Перловска река.jpg, Perlovska River before the Georgi Rakovski Military Academy
File:Perlovska river (16464711105).jpg, Perlovska river in winter
File:View of Perlovska River from Madrid Blvd.jpg, Perlovska river to Madrid boulevard
File:Perlovska reka in front of Sercica Center in Sofia 2012 PD 2.jpg, Pearl River in the fall
References
Rivers of Bulgaria
Geography of Sofia
Landforms of Sofia City Province