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Information About

Volkhov River





| Information

  Origin Lake Ilmen
  Mouth Lake Ladoga
  Basin Countries Russia
  Length 224 km (139 mi)
  Elevation 18 m (59 ft)
  Discharge 580 m&sup3/s (20,486 ft&sup3/s)
  Watershed 80,200 km&sup2 (30,965 mi&sup2)


Volkhov River, also called ''Olhava river'' () is a River in Novgorod and Leningrad Oblast s in Russia .

Volkhov flows out of the (the first Hydroelectric Dam in Russia and in the Soviet Union , opened on December 19 , 1926 in the framework of the GOERLO project) situated 25 km upstream the mouth of the river. The dam serves not for hydroelectric purposes only, but also to facilitate navigation in the lower part of the river previously known for its Rapids . Volkhov is connected to the Msta River by the Siversov channel.

In the 9th - 11th Centuries , Volkhov was a part of an important water trade route called the Road From Varangians To Greeks (Путь «из варяг в греки» in Russian) connecting Baltic and Black seas. Other parts of this route were the Neva River , Lake Ladoga , Lake Ilmen , Lovat , and Dnieper River s.

The ancient Russian capital Staraya Ladoga is situated near the mouth of the river.
Major modern cities located along the river include Velikiy Novgorod , Kirishi , Volkhov , and Novaya Ladoga .

Volkhov's main tributaries are:


The river freezes up in the late November and breaks up in the early April.