Otava (river)

The Otava () is a river in the Czech Republic, a left tributary of the Vltava River. It flows through the Plzeň and South Bohemian regions. It is formed by the confluence of the Vydra and Křemelná rivers. Together with the Vydra, which is its main source, the Otava is long, making it the 13th longest river in the country. Without the Vydra, it is long.

Etymology

The origin of the name is unclear. The word ''otava'' literally means "second harvest of grass", but the name of the river is probably of pre-Slavic origin and the resemblance to the word ''otava'' is only coincidental. A possible but unproven origin is the Germanic word ''Vatahva'', meaning "quick water". According to one theory, the name of the river is derived from the Celtic words ''áth a ava'', which meant "river with many fords".

Characteristic

From a water management point of view, the Otava and Vydra are two different rivers with separate numbering of river kilometres. The Otava itself is formed by the confluence of the Vydra and Křemelná in the territory of Hartmanice, and is long. In a broader point of view, the Otava (as Vydra) arises in the territory of Modrava in the Bohemian Forest at and flows to Zvíkovské Podhradí, where it enters the Vltava River at an elevation of . It is long, making it the 13th longest river in the country. Its drainage basin has an area of .

The Otava has many relatively significant tributaries, the following being the longest ones:

Course

The largest settlements on the river are the towns of Písek and Strakonice. The river flows through the municipal territories of Hartmanice, Rejštejn, Dlouhá Ves, Sušice, Dobršín, Rabí, Žichovice, Velké Hydčice, Malý Bor, Horažďovice, Střelské Hoštice, Horní Poříčí, Katovice, Strakonice, Slaník, Přešťovice, Štěkeň, Čejetice, Putim, Kestřany, Písek, Čížová, Vrcovice, Vojníkov, Vráž, Ostrovec, Oslov, Varvažov and Zvíkovské Podhradí.

Bodies of water

The drainage basin is rich in fishponds, especially in the area of the České Budějovice Basin. There are 4,768 bodies of water in the basin area; the largest of them is the Labuť pond with an area of , built on the stream of Kostratecký potok. In the area of the confluence of the Vltava and the Otava, the extensive Orlík Reservoir is built on the Vltava, which also extends into the lower course of the Otava. Apart from this reservoir, no other reservoir or pond is built directly on the river.

History

In earlier times, the banks of the Otava were popular for gold panning. It is still possible to find flakes of gold here. The sand panned for gold also gave the name to the town of Písek (literally 'sand').

Tourism

The Otava is suitable for river tourism. The course of the river is lined with many campsites for tourists and paddlers.

References

External links

River flow at Písek station
– Flood Warning and Forecasting Service of the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute

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Rivers of the Plzeň Region
Rivers of the South Bohemian Region
Rivers of the Czech Republic
Bohemian Forest