Vorotan (river)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Vorotan (), or Bargushad (
Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...
: Բարգուշատ, ) or Bazarchay (), is a transboundary river in the
South Caucasus The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and West Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Armenia, ...
that is the largest right tributary of the Hakari river. It starts from the northwestern slopes of the Syunik Plateau, from the Tsalk pond and adjacent springs at an altitude of 3,045 m, receives the water of streams flowing from several small ponds, as well as the springs of Gorayk village, then it flows in a southeastern direction through the territory of Sisian and
Goris Goris ( ) is a town and the centre of the Goris Municipality in the Syunik Province in southern Armenia. Located in the valley of the Goris (or Vararak) River, it is 254 kilometres from the Armenian capital Yerevan and 67 kilometres from the provi ...
regions. It flows through Armenia for in a generally south-easterly direction. The river enters Azerbaijan again, flowing for through the districts of Qubadli and Zangilan. The lower section of the Hakari, from its confluence with the Vorotan until its confluence with the Aras river, is sometimes considered to be part of the Vorotan.


Course of the river

The river flows mostly through mountainous regions of
Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...
and in several places has formed deep canyons. The towns of Sisian and Qubadli lie along its course. Six kilometers from Sisian, the river forms a
waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in seve ...
— the " Shaki Waterfall" () — that is 18m high. The river forms a natural monument – the "Devil's Bridge" — near Tatev Monastery. There are mineral pools at the base of the
travertine Travertine ( ) is a form of terrestrial limestone deposited around mineral springs, especially hot springs. It often has a fibrous or concentric appearance and exists in white, tan, cream-colored, and rusty varieties. It is formed by a process ...
arch.


Damming the river

During the Soviet period, three reservoirs forming the
Vorotan Cascade The Vorotan Cascade, or the ContourGlobal Hydro Cascade, is a cascade on the Vorotan (river), Vorotan River in Syunik Province, Armenia. It was built to produce Hydroelectricity, hydroelectric power and provide irrigation water. The Vorotan Cascad ...
were constructed. They supply Armenia with hydro-electric power and water for
irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...
. To increase the volume of water in
Lake Sevan Lake Sevan () is the largest body of water in both Armenia and the Caucasus region. It is one of the largest freshwater Alpine lake, high-altitude (alpine) lakes in Eurasia. The lake is situated in Gegharkunik Province, at an altitude of abov ...
, a tunnel was constructed to abstract some of the Vorotan's waters and divert them to the lake. Begun during the 1980s, work was stopped in 1988, when only had been completed, because of the outbreak of the
First Nagorno-Karabakh War The First Nagorno-Karabakh War was an ethnic conflict, ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nag ...
. The Armenian government finally completed the Vorotan tunnel in 2003. Prior to this, a second tunnel — "Arpa–Sevan" — was completed in 1981. This diverts some water from the
Arpa River The Arpa (; ) is a river that flows through Armenia and Azerbaijan. Originating in Armenia's Vayots Dzor province (''marz''), it is a left tributary of the Aras. It is long, and has a drainage basin of . Shaki Waterfall.jpg, Shaki Waterfall Vorotan River Canyon, Armenia.jpg, Vorotan River Canyon near Tatev File:Tatev, satani kamurj 02.JPG, The "Devil's Bridge" natural arch near Tatev Monastery Devil Bridge vorotan river.jpg, The base of the "Devil's Bridge" 1 km from
Goris Goris ( ) is a town and the centre of the Goris Municipality in the Syunik Province in southern Armenia. Located in the valley of the Goris (or Vararak) River, it is 254 kilometres from the Armenian capital Yerevan and 67 kilometres from the provi ...
Bargushad River in Qubadli District, Azerbaijan 1.jpg, The Vorotan flowing through Qubadli District


References

{{Rivers and lakes in Azerbaijan Rivers of Armenia Rivers of Azerbaijan International rivers of Europe International rivers of Asia Geography of Syunik Province Qubadli District