There are about 150 watercourses within Moscow. Many of them flow wholly or partly underground. This article will talk about a small river flowing in the southern part of the capital. So, get acquainted: the Bitsa River. Where does it start, where does it flow, and how long is it?
General information about the river
The Bitsa River (also Abitsa, or Obitec) is a watercourse within Moscow and the Moscow Region, belonging to the Volga basin. This is the second largest tributary of Pakhra. The river flows through the territory of several districts and residential areas of Moscow: Teply Stan, Yasenevo, Northern Butovo.
The Bitsa River is a small watercourse. Its total length is 24 kilometers, the catchment area is 101 sq. km. The average depth of the channel is 0.5 meters.
In archival documents there are several names of this watercourse: Abitsa, Obitsa, Obitets, Bitsy and others. The earliest mention of the river dates back to 1480. There are two main versions of the origin of this hydronym. According to the first of them, the name comes from the Old Slavonic "obisesti", which means"bypass". According to another hypothesis, the hydronym is associated with the Old Russian word "obitok", which translates as "island". Some researchers link its origin to the B altic word abista.
The course of the river: from source to mouth
Where does the Bitza River begin? And where does she carry her small waters? Let's find out now.
Bitsa originates in the vicinity of the Teply Stan district, not far from the intersection of the Moscow Ring Road and Profsoyuznaya Street. The source of the river is several springs located within the Golubinsky forest-park massif (see the map below).
Almost immediately, Bitsa hides in an underground sewer and comes to the surface near secondary school No. 1020. Then it crosses the Yasenevsky forest park, replenished by the waters of the Mikhailovsky ravine. After that, the river goes beyond the Moscow Ring Road and takes in the Frolov stream.
For almost five kilometers, the Bitsa flows parallel to the Moscow Ring Road, crossing the Northern Butovo district. Then, bypassing the Kachalovsky Ponds, the river goes beyond Moscow.
In the Moscow region, the watercourse passes through a number of villages and towns (Bitsa, Vyrubovo, Izmailovo, Spasskoye, Bulatnikovo). Further, the river crosses the railway track (Paveletskaya branch), the Don highway and turns sharply to the south, heading towards the city of Vidnoye. After passing a few more villages, Bitsa once again crosses the Paveletskaya railway. The mouth of the river is located on the outskirts of the village of Pavlovskoye near the railway bridge.
Tributes and ponds of Bitsa
The tributaries of the Bitsa are represented mainly by ravines (Frolov, Popov, Mikhailovsky,Zavyalovsky, Znamensky, Kachalovsky, Botanichesky), small streams and rivulets (Zhuravenka, Kupelinka, Kozlovka and others).
A number of ponds and small reservoirs have been created in the riverbed of the Bitsa. All of them are located in the upper and middle reaches of the river. Let's list all these reservoirs (in the direction from the source to the mouth):
- Bitsevsky.
- Old Bitsa.
- Upper, Small and Big Kachalovsky.
- Upper Znamensky.
- Hryvnia.
- Bulatnikovsky.
In the upper reaches, right at the source, the water in Bitsa is relatively clean. Subsequently, it is heavily polluted by city sewage. For this reason, swimming and fishing in Bitsa and its ponds is not recommended. The watercourse in the area of the Moscow Ring Road is especially polluted. Passing through the Upper Znamensky Pond, the water of Bitsa noticeably clears up.
Bitza River: fishing and ichthyofauna
According to avid fishermen, the biting on the Bitsa is pretty good. Here, in particular, perch, crucian carp, carp are well caught. Sometimes, if you're lucky, you can fish a pike or a roach out of the water. The best fishing is typical for the Bulatnikovsky pond, located in the middle reaches of the river.
Bitza, despite the significant degree of anthropogenic transformation of its valley, has managed to preserve quite large sections of natural shores - wild, swampy and heavily overgrown. In summer, small roach are excellently caught in such places, and crucian carp in winter.
It is important to note that the Bitsa River and its reservoirs are only suitable fortraining or recreational fishing. Due to the proximity of the metropolis and significant water pollution, the fish in this river is considered inedible.
Park in the floodplain of the river Bitsa
The banks of almost all Moscow watercourses have a huge recreational potential. After all, here, if desired, you can create all the conditions for a good rest for the residents of the capital. In 2014, active improvement of the floodplain of the Bitsa River within the Northern Butovo region began. All work, according to the press service of the city government, should be completed in autumn 2018.
The new Bitsa park should become another pearl in the necklace of Moscow's green zones. It stretches along the banks of the river and is divided by Dmitry Donskoy Boulevard into two almost identical parts.
The total area of the landscaped area is 15 hectares. It is planned to plant about 1500 different plants here. Among them are red oak, white willow, larch, Japanese spirea and other exotic species. The future park has a very picturesque relief, and the designers were given a difficult task: to competently fit various recreational areas into this landscape.
The park is already being equipped with wooden decks, seating areas, and platforms near the water. A network of alleys and paths with a total length of 6.2 kilometers is being created.
Bitsevsky Forest
Another important natural attraction located in the floodplain of the Bitsa River is the so-called Bitsa Forest. It is the second largest green area in Moscow (after LosinoyeIslands). The total area of the forest park is 2208 hectares, the length from west to east is 4 km, from north to south is 10 km.
Bitsevsky forest is of great ecological, recreational and environmental importance for the city. This is a particularly valuable natural complex with a significant diversity of flora and fauna. It plays the role of a kind of "green wedge" - a bridge through which clean air enters the heart of Moscow.
The flora of the forest park is represented by more than 600 plant species. The average age of trees in this forest is 85 years. Separate oak massifs reach the age of 150-200 years. Significant areas are occupied by aspen and birch forests. Bitsevsky forest today is a place of active recreation for Muscovites, both in summer and in winter.
Trubetskoy Estate
Several historical and architectural monuments have also been preserved in the floodplain of the Bitsa River. The most significant among them is the Znamenskoye-Sadki estate. The architectural complex of the estate is located on the left bank of the river, near the northwestern outskirts of the Northern Butovo district.
The ensemble of the estate, which once belonged to the princely family of Trubetskoy, consists of several buildings. The best preserved main house with a charming arched portico at the main entrance, a wooden one-story outbuilding and a laundry building. The highlight of the estate is the two-tiered Pink Hall, decorated with an old ceiling with the image of the chariot of the god Mars.
In the 70s, the famous Soviet film “My affectionate andgentle beast. Today, unfortunately, the entrance to its territory is limited.
