Psou - the river-border between states. Psou River: photo, description

In the Caucasus, among the stately beautiful rocky mountains, there are many fast rivers. One of them will be discussed in more detail in this article.

general information

Psou is a river that divides the territory of Abkhazia and Russia. It flows throughout the entire frontier line between states. Translated from the Abkhaz language, its name means "long river", although in reality it does not quite correspond to the truth. Its total length is only 53 kilometers.

The banks of this fast mountain river are covered with amazingly beautiful green forests and diverse vegetation.

The river refers to the territory of the Western Caucasus. Psou, as noted above, has a special and important task - it forms a water boundary between the two states, namely, between the Russian Krasnodar Territory and the Gagra district of Abkhazia.

Its source lies high in the mountains (the Adepsta slope), and the mouth of the Psou River is near the Black Sea. The total area of the basin is approximately 421 square kilometers. The river flows along the eastern outskirts of the resort city of Sochi (Adler district).

Brief history of the appearance of the border along the Psou River

Psou - the river, which until 1920 had not yet served as a border guard. Until the middle of the 19th century (until 1864), it flowed along the central part of the land of the Sadzas (one of the West-Abkhazian ethnic groups). Its upper reaches were located on the territory of another free Abkhaz settlement - Aibga.

Immediately after the end of the war, the Western Abkhazians were evicted in Turkey, and in the liberated lands in 1866 the Black Sea district was formed, the borders of which passed from the city of Tuapse to Bzybi.

This district in 1896 was transformed into the Black Sea province, which continued to exist until the very October Revolution of 1917. All this time the Psou River was an internal water stream and, again, did not perform any border functions.

The troops of the Georgian Democratic Republic occupied in 1918 the territory of Abkhazia. In connection with the fighting between the volunteer Denikin army and the Georgian troops in the Sochi-Gagra region, the Abkhazian border from the west could not be determined for a long period of time. Only after Russia's short-term recognition of Georgia's independence in 1920 was a treaty signifying the border along the Psou River.

Psou River: photo, description of the area

Despite the relatively small length, the river is very high and quite turbulent. Like many other mountain rivers, it has a very fast current, forming numerous whirlpools. A high level of precipitation in the western part of the Greater Caucasus provides a high flow.

The river Psou (Abkhazia) begins not from the Main Range, but from its nearby spurs. These are the ranges of Ategert and Ayumga. The upper reaches of the river are surrounded by the Turmi mountains. This is quite a harsh terrain with mountains formed by volcanic rocks. The upper slopes are thickly overgrown with fir trees, and just below there are beech trees, and then (even lower, in the valley) - mixed forests with oaks and maples. Sometimes here there are fruit trees, entwined with different kinds of lianas (clematis, wild grapes, periplane, sassaparilla, etc.).

Nutrition and tributaries

Psou - a river that at first feeds (at the source) by groundwater at the tops of the mountains. As the current flows to Psou, various tributaries join, which too (as well as precipitation) contributes to its fullness. The river, thanks to all the above factors, becomes strong and powerful. It maintains the water level even in the hottest and hottest periods of the year.

In winter, the river does not completely freeze - only in places and only during the coldest days.

Due to the unique terrain, the right tributaries that flow into Psou from the Russian territory are more numerous and longer than the left. Especially distinguished from them are such rivers as Bezymyanka, Glubokaya, Arkva and Mendeliya. From the side of Abkhazia from the left tributaries it is possible to single out the river Phist.

Geography

The river Psou lies almost parallel to the river Mzymta. However, unlike the second, Psou - the river, which, as mentioned above, flows from the spurs of the Main Caucasian Range. First it flows to the west, then to the north-west, and then, gradually turning to the left, forms a slightly arched arc and goes to the south. In the Black Sea, it flows near Adler. This is about eight kilometers from the mouth of the Mzymta River itself.

The upper reaches of the Psou River are surrounded by the Tõmi mountains, formed by granite, limestone and volcanic rocks. These are very high mountains (peak Adzituko reaches a height of 3,230 meters).

Microdistrict Vesyolye-Psou

This original name belongs to one of the microdistricts, located in the Adler district of Sochi. The village is a cozy resort town, where thousands of tourists come every year. It is named so not casually, after all the east border of area passes on the river with the same name.

The settlement consists mainly of private buildings. There are, of course, a small number of multi-storey modern buildings. The infrastructure of the microdistrict is quite developed - there are shops, a school, a kindergarten and a polyclinic.

In conclusion: briefly about the population of the locality

Until the middle of the 19th century, the majority of the population of the Psou Valley were ethnic Abkhazians. However, after the expulsion of Muslims to Turkey, this valley practically lost its inhabitants. Only in the last decades of the same century the territories were inhabited by Armenians, Russians, Greeks, Estonians and other peoples. By the way, they still live in these wonderful paradise places.