The Sozh River is one of the most beautiful rivers in Belarus. Its length is 648 km, of which 155 km flows through the territory of Russia. It is the second largest tributary of the Dnieper after the river. Pripyat. The width of its channel in the lower reaches is 230 m.
Basic data
The Sozh River originates in Russia on the Smolensk-Moscow Upland, 12 km south of the city of Smolensk, and then flows through the territory of two Belarusian regions - Mogilev and Gomel. The catchment area is asymmetric and clearly defined, which is especially noticeable along the left bank.
Total catchment area is:
• in Russia - 42140 km2;
• in Belarus – 21700 km2.
The water level in the Sozh River reaches 6 meters at a flow speed that sometimes exceeds 1.5 m/s. As a result, in the section of the river near Gomel, the river carries about 200 cubic meters of water in one minute.
For the most part, the relief of the basin is represented by small hills, the height of which does not exceed 20 m. Individual sections are separated by deep ravines and gullies. The riverbed is quitewinding, which is especially noticeable near Slavgorod, where there is a rather large bend near the river.
Before Gomel, there are even sandy islands on the river, the length of which does not exceed 300 m, and the width is 50 m. As for lakes, their area in the catchment area is less than 1%. In fact, these are separate mirror reservoirs, the area of \u200b\u200bwhich does not exceed 1 km2.
Changes in water level
The rise in the water level continues for a crescent in the upper reaches and about a month in the lower reaches. The water level in the Sozh River begins to increase from the end of March. At the same time, the lowest water height is 4 m, and the highest is 7.5 m. Often, in late spring or early summer, the water level can rise by several meters as a result of prolonged downpours and floods, the duration of which sometimes exceeds one month.
Winter average rise is only a few tens of centimeters higher than summer and in most cases passes almost imperceptibly.
The Sozh begins to freeze at the beginning of winter, and opens only in the middle of spring, and this process begins from the mouth to the upper reaches. The average water temperature in the Sozh River in summer is 19-28°С.
Origin of the name
This river was the central river for the Eastern Slavs of the Radimichi. The influence of the Sozh River in the history of the Radimichi land should be viewed through the prism of factors: the role of the Sozh in the socio-economic, political and spiritual life of people. Of course, the role of Sozh in the socio-economic life was the greatest. The Sozh River wasan integral part of the trade route "from the Varangians to the Greeks". Along the banks of the river and its tributaries, the Slavs founded their rural settlements and cities. Sozh was one of the main factors that influenced the emergence of Gomel.
Fishing
There are all kinds of fish in Sozh, but their numbers have been significantly affected by increased poaching and weather conditions, because as a result of a large number of floods, it is sometimes difficult for fish to enter Sozh to spawn.
After the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, the Sozh River has ceased to be used for industrial fishing, and the herbage in it is no longer removed. As a result, constant decay of vegetation occurs, and the content of harmful substances in the water increases significantly, the last spawning grounds and places of mass feeding of many fish species are destroyed.
Interesting facts
Wide sandy strips stretch along the coastal areas along the entire length of the river. The bottom in close proximity to the shore is flat and sandy, thanks to which both adults and children can swim in the river. In the area of the urban village of Loev Sozh, it flows into the Dnieper, through which the greatest waterway from the B altic Sea to the Black Sea previously ran, known since ancient times as the route “from the Varangians to the Greeks.”
