Maya River: origins, length, depth, rafting, nature, fishing and recreation

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:47

The Maya River is the largest tributary of the Aldan, flowing through the territories of the Khabarovsk Territory and Yakutia. The length of the channel is quite large (1053 km), and the catchment area is 171 thousand square kilometers. Through the Khabarovsk Territory, the Maya River passes through a section of the channel from the source to the confluence of the Yudoma tributary, and then flows through the lands of Yakutia.

The name "Maya" is of Turkic origin and literally means "land of the river".

General description and photo of the Maya River

Maya is a very beautiful Far Eastern river, meandering among the picturesque landscapes of mountains and ridges. It is very interesting for fishing and rafting. Its source is located in the upper reaches of the Yudomo-Maya Highlands at an altitude of 1100 meters above sea level and is formed from the confluence of two rivers - the right Mai and the left Mai.

The river flows into Aldan from the right side and, moreover, almost against the current, which is very rare. The mouth is located opposite the village of Ust-Maya (height above sea level 153meters).

The section of the Maya River in the Khabarovsk Yudomo-Maysky Highlands belongs to the Ayano-Maysky District. After the mouth of the Yudoma, the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) begins. In this region, Maya is considered one of the most picturesque rivers. However, its tourist development is not so intensive due to the remoteness of the channel from the places of civilization and its inaccessibility for lovers of fishing and rafting.

Navigation on the Maya River is possible from the mouth to a point located 547 km upstream. In some cases, you can climb 577 km to the confluence of the Northern Uy tributary. Riverboats can only get here by high water.

Geography

Mai's route passes through a wide valley, where the river forms oxbow lakes and a large number of channels. At 20 kilometers from the source, the channel enters a gorge between steep rocks, which, approaching the water tightly, form clamps. This section ends just short of the confluence of the tributary of the Core.

After passing the gorge, the river valley becomes wide again, overflowing for several kilometers after Deering Jaroha. The formation of a channel begins below the confluence of the Sakha tributary.

There are very few settlements along the river, among them:

• Nelkan;
• Jigda;
• Aim;
• Ust-Yudoma.

The village of Nelkan is especially famous, through which the route from Yakutsk to the Sea of Okhotsk used to run. This settlement was founded in 1818, and is currentlythe organizational center of the backbone territory of the Ayano-Maisky district.

Below the confluence of the Lima duct, the riverbed forms a large loop around the Nelkan Mountains. The latter come close to the water, forming sheer cliffs. On the left side, three channels flow into the loop: Maimakan, Ignikan and Batomga.

Characteristic of the water channel

Maya has a wide winding channel, along which channels, pebble banks and rifts are often found. In some areas, the river cuts into the banks, destroying and eroding them. The main channel forms a network of branches that can depart from the fairway by 2-3 kilometers, and the outer channels - by 10.

The river valley in the upper part is wider and more swampy than in the lower reaches, but at the same time, smaller. The smallest depth is observed on pebble rifts, where it does not exceed 25 cm during low water periods. The smallest part of the river - from the source to the mouth of the Northern Uy. The length of this section is 600 km.

There are especially many pebble rifts on the segment from Uya to the confluence of the Lika, 200 km long. The current here is fast, and the slope is large (average value is 0.34 m/km). The width of the channel in this section varies from 70 to 370 meters, and the size of the floodplain reaches one and a half kilometers.

Despite the fact that for the most part the upper reaches of the Mai are considered wider than the lower reaches, at the very beginning of its journey the river has a relatively narrow channel. Lika is followed by a segment 220 km long, ending at the mouthYudoma. The channel here is wider (350 meters), and the depth reaches 80 cm. The Yudoma tributary makes the river more full-flowing, which entails an increase in the valley to 19-15 km. It is from this moment that May becomes really wide (200-600 meters).

Hydrological regime

The May River is characterized by a mixed diet. Replenishment sources are source waters, rains, tributaries and snows, the melting of which makes the largest contribution. River level fluctuations are seasonal in nature and are associated with ice drift (rise by 4 meters) and summer showers (rise by 1-1.5 meters). The average annual water flow in May is 1180 cubic meters per second. The speed of the current is quite high both in the upper and lower reaches.

In the second half of October, May is covered with ice, which begins to melt only in mid-May. Floods regularly occur on the river, and especially often during the transition period from July to August. When these phenomena occur on several tributaries at the same time, floods occur on May, which cover the muddy coasts and islands with water, the presence of which is evidenced only by sticking out trees.

Nature

On the banks of the Mai there are also natural monuments, which include karst caves:

• Abagy-Je;
• Onne;
• Namskaya.

In some places, on the sides of the riverbed rise the famous multi-colored rocks, among which there are red, blue and brown. Where the channel climbs to the sloping side of the valley, a picturesque view of the lake shore opens up. Between maryrivers, in some places ancient taiga grows, not affected by either human activities or natural fires. These sites have a unique pristine look.

Another natural attraction of Mai is the huge Tsipandinskaya cave, which stretches 400 kilometers south of the coast and overlooks the Uchur River.

Plant and animal life

The list of fauna species living in the coastal zone of the Maya River basin is quite rich and includes:

• large predatory animals (wolf, bear, fox);
• ungulates (moose, deer, roe deer, musk deer);
• birds (grouse, black grouse, hazel grouse, partridge);
• small forest animals (hare, marten, weasel, sable, chipmunk);
• large number of waterfowl.

Flora is represented by coniferous forests, as well as deciduous trees (birch, aspen, poplar, willow), various shrubs (including berries) and herbs.

Rest

Rest on the Maya River involves 3 main types of activities:

• alloys;
• fishing;
• visit natural monuments.

Inaccessibility and remoteness from settlements make this river a unique place of pristine nature. However, for the same reasons, the tourism sector within its channel is poorly developed.

Recreation in May is more difficult than on rivers with well-established routes. Getting to a place where you can start fishing or rafting is quite difficult. But for lovers of romanceuntouched nature, the Maya River is ideal, and experienced fishermen will certainly appreciate the pristine nature of its waters, the ichthyofauna of which has not been affected by human actions, including uncontrolled fishing.

Alloys

Due to the rapidity of the waters and powerful sinks, rafting on the Maya River is quite difficult, but well suited for adrenaline lovers. In the upper reaches of the route, shivers and creases are often found, among which there are also perennial ones.

The advantage of the Maya River is that it is quite full-flowing from the very source. This makes it possible to start rafting from the upper reaches of the channel. Usually tourists get there from the city of Nikolaevsk-on-Amur. The upper part of the river is not very comfortable for rafting due to poor banks, on which there are practically no hard ground zones.

A very common route from the village of Briakan to the very mouth of Mai. On this section of the channel there are picturesque gorges with waterfalls. Along the way, you can admire the pristine beauties of the nature of the Far East, there are no settlements along the way. The total length of this route is 300 kilometers.

Quite often, following the Mai channel is a continuation of the rafting along the Yudoma River. Combining water travel with fishing is very popular.

Fishing

According to the fishermen, fishing on the Maya River always pleases with a generous result. The local ichthyofauna is very diverse, which has not yet been damaged by fishing pressure. The following types of fish live in May:

• minnow;
• perch river;
• burbot;
• taimen;
• sig;
• roach;
• pike;
• lenok;
• grayling;
• common sloth.

Fishing on the Maya River is especially famous for catching taimen - a large representative of the salmon family, which can grow up to 2 meters in length and weigh 60-80 kg. This species is best caught between mid-summer and late September. Most often, taimen is found in the area between the mouths of the Sakha and Lima.

At present, the range of this giant has noticeably decreased due to the detrimental impact of human economic activity on natural aquatic ecosystems. Maya is one of the few rivers where the taimen is still preserved and is not prohibited for catching. According to the fishermen, the probability of catching this handsome man during the rafting is 60-70%.