The Volga–Baltic Waterway (Volgobalt, Волгобалт), formerly known as the Mariinsk Canal System (Russian: Мариинская водная система), is a series of
canal
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flow un ...
s and
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 ...
s in
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
which link the
Volga
The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the List of rivers of Europe#Rivers of Europe by length, longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Cas ...
with the
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain.
The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...
via the
Neva
The Neva (russian: Нева́, ) is a river in northwestern Russia flowing from Lake Ladoga through the western part of Leningrad Oblast (historical region of Ingria) to the Neva Bay of the Gulf of Finland. Despite its modest length of , it ...
. Like the
Volga–Don Canal
Lenin Volga–Don Shipping Canal (Russian:Волго-Донской судоходный канал имени, ''В. И. Ленина, Volga-Donskoy soudokhodniy kanal imeni V. I. Lenina'', abbreviated ВДСК, ''VDSK'') is a ship canal in Rus ...
, it connects the biggest lake on
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...
, the
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia ...
, to the
World Ocean
The ocean (also the sea or the world ocean) is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of the surface of Earth and contains 97% of Earth's water. An ocean can also refer to any of the large bodies of water into which the worl ...
. Its overall length between
Cherepovets and
Lake Onega
Lake Onega (; also known as Onego, rus, Оне́жское о́зеро, r=Onezhskoe ozero, p=ɐˈnʲɛʂskəɪ ˈozʲɪrə; fi, Ääninen, Äänisjärvi; vep, Änine, Änižjärv) is a lake in northwestern Russia, on the territory of the Repu ...
is .
Originally constructed in the early 19th century, the system was rebuilt for larger vessels in the 1960s, becoming a part of the
Unified Deep Water System of European Russia
The Unified Deep Water System of European Russia (russian: Единая глубоководная система Европейской части Российской Федерации, translit=Yedinaya glubokovodnaya sistema Yevropeyskoy chast ...
.
The original name "Mariinsky" is the credit to
Empress Maria Feodorovna, the second wife of Emperor
Paul I of Russia
Paul I (russian: Па́вел I Петро́вич ; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1796 until his assassination. Officially, he was the only son of Peter III of Russia, Peter III and Catherine the Great, although Catherine hinted that he w ...
.
[СУДОХОДСТВО НА БЕЛОМ ОЗЕРЕ ДО И ПОСЛЕ ПРОРЫТИЯ БЕЛОЗЕРСКОГО ОБВОДНОГО КАНАЛА]
/ref>
History
After Peter the Great
Peter I ( – ), most commonly known as Peter the Great,) or Pyotr Alekséyevich ( rus, Пётр Алексе́евич, p=ˈpʲɵtr ɐlʲɪˈksʲejɪvʲɪtɕ, , group=pron was a Russian monarch who ruled the Tsardom of Russia from t ...
wrested the Gulf of Finland
The Gulf of Finland ( fi, Suomenlahti; et, Soome laht; rus, Фи́нский зали́в, r=Finskiy zaliv, p=ˈfʲinskʲɪj zɐˈlʲif; sv, Finska viken) is the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea. It extends between Finland to the north and E ...
from Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
, it made for a great city to secure a means of river transport for Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
on the Baltic
Baltic may refer to:
Peoples and languages
* Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian
*Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originati ...
with the Russian hinterland. These would shift heavy loads in all but the depths of winter. The prototype (via) Vyshny Volochyok
Vyshny VolochyokThe more-regular spelling Vyshny Volochok ( rus, Вы́шний Волочо́к)—with instead of after an unpaired " hush consonant"—is seen but is not official; the two spellings are pronounced the same in Russian. ( rus, ...
canal completed by 1709, provided a connection of Saint Petersburg to Lake Ladoga. The name of that town means "upper portage". However, the weather on the lake frequently wrecked the barges leading to the ambitious project of the Ladoga Canal
The Ladoga Canal (russian: Лaдожский канал, Ladozhsky Canal) is a historical water transport route, now situated in Leningrad Oblast, linking the Neva and the Svir River so as to bypass the stormy waters of Lake Ladoga which lies i ...
s into the southern coast of the lake.
Under Alexander I of Russia
Alexander I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1801, the first King of Congress Poland from 1815, and the Grand Duke of Finland from 1809 to his death. He was the eldest son of Emperor Paul I and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg.
The son of ...
, the waterway through Vychny Volochyok was complemented by the Tikhvin canal system (1811) and the Mariinsk canal system (1810), the latter becoming by far the most popular of the three.
The Mariinsk was an outstanding monument of early 19th-century hydrotechnics, which proved to be key to national economic prowess. The system started in Rybinsk
Rybinsk ( rus, Рыбинск, p=ˈrɨbʲɪnsk), the second largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Yaroslavl Oblast in Russia, lies at the confluence of the Volga River, Volga and Sheksna Rivers, 267 kilometers north-north-eas ...
and passed through much of the Sheksna River
The Sheksna (russian: Шексна́) is a river in Belozersky, Kirillovsky, Sheksninsky, and Cherepovetsky Districts of Vologda Oblast in Russia. It is a left tributary of the Volga. It is long, and the area of its basin . . It then passed Lake Beloye (and Belozersky bypass canal), Kovzha
, image =
, image_size =
, image_caption =
, source1_location =Lake Kovzhskoye
, mouth_location =Lake Beloye
, subdivision_type1 = Country
, subdivision_name1 =Russia
, length =
, source1_elevation =
...
, its artificial Novomariinsky Canal, the Vytegra
Vytegra ( rus, Вы́тегра, p=ˈvɨtʲɪɡrə) is a town and the administrative center of Vytegorsky District in Vologda Oblast, Russia, located along the shores of the Vytegra River on Volga–Baltic Waterway, northwest of Vologda, the ...
to pass through Lake Onega
Lake Onega (; also known as Onego, rus, Оне́жское о́зеро, r=Onezhskoe ozero, p=ɐˈnʲɛʂskəɪ ˈozʲɪrə; fi, Ääninen, Äänisjärvi; vep, Änine, Änižjärv) is a lake in northwestern Russia, on the territory of the Repu ...
. To or from there vessels sailed through the Onega Canal
The Onega Canal (russian: Онежский канал) is a canal that runs along the southern banks of Lake Onega in Vytegorsky District of Vologda Oblast and Podporozhsky District of Leningrad Oblasts in Russia. It was built 1818–1820 and 1845 ...
, the Svir, the Ladoga Canal
The Ladoga Canal (russian: Лaдожский канал, Ladozhsky Canal) is a historical water transport route, now situated in Leningrad Oblast, linking the Neva and the Svir River so as to bypass the stormy waters of Lake Ladoga which lies i ...
, and the Neva
The Neva (russian: Нева́, ) is a river in northwestern Russia flowing from Lake Ladoga through the western part of Leningrad Oblast (historical region of Ingria) to the Neva Bay of the Gulf of Finland. Despite its modest length of , it ...
to or from the Gulf of Finland
The Gulf of Finland ( fi, Suomenlahti; et, Soome laht; rus, Фи́нский зали́в, r=Finskiy zaliv, p=ˈfʲinskʲɪj zɐˈlʲif; sv, Finska viken) is the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea. It extends between Finland to the north and E ...
.
In 1829, the Northern Dvina Canal
The Northern Dvina Canal (russian: Северодвинский канал) is a 64 km long canal in Vologda Oblast in Russia. It connects the Volga-Baltic Waterway to the Northern Dvina River through its tributary, the Sukhona River. The Nor ...
was opened running to the north-east; it connects the lower Sheksna
The Sheksna (russian: Шексна́) is a river in Belozersky, Kirillovsky, Sheksninsky, and Cherepovetsky Districts of Vologda Oblast in Russia. It is a left tributary of the Volga. It is long, and the area of its basin . (one of the Volga's tributaries) through Kubenskoye Lake to a canalised Northern Dvina
, image = dvina.jpg
, image_size =
, image_caption = Northern Dvina starts as the confluence of Yug River (on left) and Sukhona River (on top) near Veliky Ustyug (photo 2001)
, source1 = Confluence of ...
, flowing into the White Sea
The White Sea (russian: Белое море, ''Béloye móre''; Karelian and fi, Vienanmeri, lit. Dvina Sea; yrk, Сэрако ямʼ, ''Serako yam'') is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is su ...
. The system was further expanded: three more canals, Belozersky, Onezhsky, and Novoladozhsky, enabling smaller craft to bypass dangerous waters of the three big lakes (Beloye, Onega and Ladoga), were inaugurated towards the end of the century.
Another connection was added in the 1930s, when the infamous White Sea – Baltic Canal
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
was constructed by gulag
The Gulag, an acronym for , , "chief administration of the camps". The original name given to the system of camps controlled by the GPU was the Main Administration of Corrective Labor Camps (, )., name=, group= was the government agency in ...
prisoners at enormous human cost between Lake Onega and the White Sea
The White Sea (russian: Белое море, ''Béloye móre''; Karelian and fi, Vienanmeri, lit. Dvina Sea; yrk, Сэрако ямʼ, ''Serako yam'') is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is su ...
.
Tourism
Sinc the 1990s the Volga–Baltic Waterway has grown as a tour boat route to sail and/or motor along or around the Golden Ring of Russia
The Golden Ring of Russia (russian: Золото́е кольцо́ Росси́и ) unites old Russian cities of five Oblasts – usually excluding Moscow – as a well-known theme-route. The grouping is centred northeast of t ...
.
Heavy power plant transit
In 2016, the core of Belarusian nuclear power plant, VVER-1200
The water-water energetic reactor (WWER), or VVER (from russian: водо-водяной энергетический реактор; transliterates as ; ''water-water power reactor'') is a series of pressurized water reactor designs originally de ...
, which was 330 tonnes, 13 meters high, and 4.5 meters in diameter, was transferred to the plant via the Tsimlyansk Reservoir
Tsimlyansk Reservoir or Tsimlyanskoye Reservoir (russian: Цимля́нское водохрани́лище) is an artificial lake on the Don River in the territories of Rostov and Volgograd Oblasts at . Completed in 1952, the reservoir ...
, the Volga-Don Canal, the Volga–Baltic Waterway, the Volkhov River
The Volkhov (russian: Во́лхов) is a river in Novgorodsky and Chudovsky Districts of Novgorod Oblast and Kirishsky and Volkhovsky Districts of Leningrad Oblast in northwestern Russia. It connects Lake Ilmen and Lake Ladoga and forms pa ...
and a special rail car.[
]
Volga–Baltic Canal improvement
In Soviet times, the Mariinsk canal system was constantly improved. Two locks were built on the Svir River
The Svir (, Veps: , Karelian/ Finnish: ) is a river in Podporozhsky, Lodeynopolsky, and Volkhovsky districts in the north-east of Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It flows westwards from Lake Onega to Lake Ladoga, thus connecting the two larges ...
(in 1936 and 1952); 3 locks were built on the Sheksna River
The Sheksna (russian: Шексна́) is a river in Belozersky, Kirillovsky, Sheksninsky, and Cherepovetsky Districts of Vologda Oblast in Russia. It is a left tributary of the Volga. It is long, and the area of its basin . . Major improvement of the Volga–Baltic Waterway took place in 1960–1964, and the new Volga–Baltic Waterway was opened on 5 June 1964. 39 old wooden locks were replaced with 7 new locks, and one parallel lock was built later in 1995. The locks' limiting dimensions are 210 m long, 17.6 m wide and 4.2 m deep, allowing passage of river-sea ships of up to 5000 tons displacement. Such ships were able to sail directly across the big lakes instead of using the bypass canals. Typical travel: Cherepovets to/from Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
fell to 2.5–3 days, from 10–15.
The modern route sometimes follows the route of the old Mariinsk system and sometimes diverges from it. Six of the canal's eight locks are along 35 km of the northern slope, descending 80 metres. Only 2 locks (which are parallel) are on the southern slope, for a rise of 13 metres, near Sheksna
The Sheksna (russian: Шексна́) is a river in Belozersky, Kirillovsky, Sheksninsky, and Cherepovetsky Districts of Vologda Oblast in Russia. It is a left tributary of the Volga. It is long, and the area of its basin . on the Sheksna River
The Sheksna (russian: Шексна́) is a river in Belozersky, Kirillovsky, Sheksninsky, and Cherepovetsky Districts of Vologda Oblast in Russia. It is a left tributary of the Volga. It is long, and the area of its basin . , 50 km upstream from Cherepovets. The canal route on the northern slope follows the Vytegra
Vytegra ( rus, Вы́тегра, p=ˈvɨtʲɪɡrə) is a town and the administrative center of Vytegorsky District in Vologda Oblast, Russia, located along the shores of the Vytegra River on Volga–Baltic Waterway, northwest of Vologda, the ...
flooded riverbed. Thus the summit pound of the canal between Pakhomovo locks on Vytegra
Vytegra ( rus, Вы́тегра, p=ˈvɨtʲɪɡrə) is a town and the administrative center of Vytegorsky District in Vologda Oblast, Russia, located along the shores of the Vytegra River on Volga–Baltic Waterway, northwest of Vologda, the ...
and Sheksna Reservoir
The Sheksna Reservoir or the Sheksninskoe Reservoir (russian: Шексни́нское водохрани́лище) is a water reservoir on Sheksna River and Lake Beloye, in Belozersky, Vashkinsky, Kirillovsky, and Sheksninsky Districts of Vo ...
dam is 278 km. It comprises an artificial canal (40 km long), much of the Kovzha
, image =
, image_size =
, image_caption =
, source1_location =Lake Kovzhskoye
, mouth_location =Lake Beloye
, subdivision_type1 = Country
, subdivision_name1 =Russia
, length =
, source1_elevation =
...
, Lake Beloye, and part of the Sheksna
The Sheksna (russian: Шексна́) is a river in Belozersky, Kirillovsky, Sheksninsky, and Cherepovetsky Districts of Vologda Oblast in Russia. It is a left tributary of the Volga. It is long, and the area of its basin . . The route of the southern slope follows the Shekshna, where it parallels the Rybinsk Reservoir
Rybinsk Reservoir ( rus, Ры́бинское водохрани́лище, r=Rybinskoye vodokhranilishche, p=ˈrɨbʲɪnskəɪ vədəxrɐˈnʲilʲɪɕə), informally called the Rybinsk Sea, is a water reservoir on the Volga River and its tributar ...
.
Current developments
The canal is used for oil and lumber export and for tourism. According to the Maritime Board (''Morskaya Kollegiya'') of the Russian government, 17.6 million tons of cargo were carried over the Volga–Baltic Waterway in 2004, close to its maximum capacity. The Lower Svir Lock
Lock(s) may refer to:
Common meanings
*Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance
*Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal
Arts and entertainment
* ''Lock ...
was one of the two busiest locks on Russia's inland waterways (the other one was the Kochetov Lock on the lower Don River
The Don ( rus, Дон, p=don) is the fifth-longest river in Europe. Flowing from Central Russia to the Sea of Azov in Southern Russia, it is one of Russia's largest rivers and played an important role for traders from the Byzantine Empire.
Its ...
).Морская коллегия: Речной транспорт
(Maritime Board: River Transport)
See also
* Volga–Don Canal
Lenin Volga–Don Shipping Canal (Russian:Волго-Донской судоходный канал имени, ''В. И. Ленина, Volga-Donskoy soudokhodniy kanal imeni V. I. Lenina'', abbreviated ВДСК, ''VDSK'') is a ship canal in Rus ...
* White Sea–Baltic Canal
The White Sea–Baltic Canal (russian: Беломо́рско-Балти́йский кана́л, , ), often abbreviated to White Sea Canal () is a ship canal in Russia opened on 2 August 1933. It connects the White Sea, in the Arctic Ocean, with ...
* Unified Deep Water System of European Russia
The Unified Deep Water System of European Russia (russian: Единая глубоководная система Европейской части Российской Федерации, translit=Yedinaya glubokovodnaya sistema Yevropeyskoy chast ...
References
External links
Volga-Baltic waterway on Infoflot site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Volga-Baltic Waterway
Canals in Russia
Baltic Sea
Volga basin
Geography of Vologda Oblast
Geography of Leningrad Oblast
Transport in Leningrad Oblast
Canals opened in 1964
Neva River