Volcanoes of Kamachatka. Volcanoes of Kamchatka The highest mountain in Kamchatka height
Kamchatka is a mountainous country. Over three-quarters of its territory is occupied by mountains. Large lowlands are found only in the very north, in the west and in the neutral part of the peninsula. In all other places, lowlands are developed in the form of narrow strips confined to river valleys.
The relief of Kamchatka was formed relatively recently, at the very end of the Cenozoic era. Before this, on the site of the modern peninsula there was a sea, above the surface of which some parts of the modern ridges - the Middle and Eastern - rose in the form of separate islands.
At the beginning of the Quaternary period (the Quaternary period is the last million years of the geological history of the Earth), intense mountain-building movements began within the territory occupied by present-day Kamchatka. At the same time, individual sections behaved differently. Some rose faster and higher - mountains grew; others grew relatively slowly or even sank - lowlands appeared.
Flowing waters, wind and other processes gradually destroyed the raised areas of the earth's crust. And the greater the uplifts, the stronger the erosion processes. In the process of formation of the region's relief, the role of rivers, which cut deep valleys through the entire territory of the peninsula, is extremely important. Especially deep valleys are confined to high mountain ranges.
Mountain-building movements continue today. They are evidenced by areas of sea terraces raised several hundred meters - sections of the former seabed that emerged from under the surface of the water. They are currently widespread on the western and eastern coasts of Kamchatka. The ongoing intense mountain-building movements are indicated by frequent earthquakes occurring in many areas of the peninsula, as well as volcanic activity.
The areas that are currently rising or rising in the recent past are characterized by very deep canyon-like river valleys with a large number of rapids and waterfalls, and steep, in some places almost vertical, mountain slopes.
The sinking areas are dominated by wide swampy lowlands. Rivers and streams, falling within the boundaries of such lowlands, are divided into separate branches and do not have clearly defined channels. If the subsidence occurs near the seashore, then such an area is often flooded by the sea.
Repeatedly over the past several hundred thousand years, the mountains and lowlands of the Kamchatka Peninsula have been covered with powerful glaciers. The traces of the last of these glaciations, which ended here 10-12 thousand years ago, are especially clearly visible. The glaciers began high in the mountains and stretched along river valleys for tens of kilometers. The largest of them entered the lowlands. They widened and deepened the valleys they passed through. In the upper reaches of the valleys, in the places where they began, sharp peaks and jagged mountain ridges arose. Glaciers carried away a huge amount of rock fragments. Most of the debris was deposited at their ends. Subsequently, a very unique hilly topography with a large number of small lakes of various shapes formed in these places.
Similar terrain with lakes is very common in the region: large areas of it are found on the watershed of the Kamchatka and Bystraya rivers, in the valleys of tributaries of the Avachi rivers and in many others. These places, covered with sun-drenched birch forests with numerous picturesque lakes filled with clean, clear water, are very beautiful.
Earthquakes and volcanic activity play a significant role in transforming the relief of the peninsula. The strongest earthquakes, up to 8 points, were recorded on the east coast, weaker ones, up to 6-7 points, in the central part and the weakest, up to 5 points, on the west coast of the region. During earthquakes, numerous rock falls and landslides occur, and deep cracks are formed that cut through the surface of the earth. Earthquakes, the epicenters of which are located at sea, often generate tsunamis, causing significant destruction in the coastal strip of the Kuril Islands and on the eastern coast of Kamchatka.
Volcanic products make up hundreds of large extinct and active volcanoes, thousands of smaller forms - lava and cinder cones. Lava flows of various ages cover more than a third of the peninsula's territory. There are especially many volcanoes in the southern and eastern parts, as well as in the Sredinny Range. The most ancient volcanoes are so badly destroyed that they can only be identified by the rocks that make them up. The younger ones are much better preserved and have a typical cone shape. Active volcanoes have a particularly fresh appearance. These include the highest volcano on the Asian continent - Klyuchevskaya Sopka (4750 m), as well as Koryakskaya, Avachinskaya and many others.
The shores of Kamchatka are constantly exposed to sea waves and currents. Sea waves erode the protruding parts of the shores, forming very steep ledges. In these places, as a rule, you can see a lot of rocks, on which the waves crash with a roar. Material from coastal destruction is carried out to sea by currents or deposited in bays and bays, forming beaches and spits.
The largest mountain structures of the peninsula, composed mainly of ancient rocks, are the Sredinny and Eastern ranges.
The median ridge, elongated in a northeast direction, stretches across the entire Kamchatka from the Plotnikova River in the south to the northern tip of the peninsula. Its highest point is Ichinsky volcano, 3621 m.
The relief of the Sredinny Range is exceptionally diverse. In some places the mountains are very dissected, have sharp ridges and peaks with steep, sometimes sheer walls. The highest parts of the ridge, processed by ancient glaciers, have this relief. Less high areas are distinguished by a calmer relief: less dissected mountains with flattened watersheds predominate here. Volcanoes and highly elevated, table-like platforms composed of lavas are widespread in this area.
The eastern ridge is less significant. In the south, it begins at approximately the same latitude as Sredinny and extends north to the Ozerny Peninsula (on the east coast). It consists of a whole series of smaller ridges that have their own names. In the south, this is the Ganalsky ridge, which in general is the highest and most strongly dissected mountain unit of the peninsula: almost along its entire length, the watershed zone has a height of about 2000 m and higher, and the depth of the valleys cutting through it reaches 1900-1500 m. The bottoms of the valleys are narrow, littered with huge stones and boulders, they are almost entirely occupied by rapidly rushing mountain streams.
The Ganalsky ridge is one of the most beautiful and difficult to access mountain regions of Kamchatka, even for climbers: the passes are impassable, there are almost no trails. The watershed, devoid of any vegetation, rocky or covered with rubble and boulders, resembles a jagged saw.
Further to the north is the Valaginsky ridge. It is lower than Ganalsky, but its relief is just as strongly dissected. Even further north is the Tumrok ridge. Unlike the previous two, there are many old destroyed volcanoes within its borders.
The northern end of the Eastern Range is called the Kumroch Range. This is its lowest part: most of the peaks here barely reach 1000 m. However, in the southern part there is the highest point of the Eastern Range - the ancient, long-extinct volcano Shish (2346 m).
Mountains composed of ancient rocks dominate the eastern edge of the peninsula. But here they do not stretch in a continuous chain, as in the Sredinny and Eastern ridges, but are located on peninsulas protruding far into the sea - Shipunsky, Kronotsky, Kamchatsky and others. The bays jut deep into the mountain ranges, very picturesque, narrow, straight, with steep walls. They are called fjords. During ancient glaciations, powerful tongues of glaciers descended into the sea along these valleys.
The shores of the eastern peninsulas, facing the sea, are very steep, sometimes almost vertical. Many rivers flowing into the sea often end in beautiful waterfalls in these areas.
The Koryak Highland is the last large mountain range composed of ancient rocks, which is located in the very north of the region. It almost everywhere has a calmer topography. Heights range from 1000 to 1800 m. Strongly dissected mountains with jagged ridges and steep slopes are developed only in some of the highest areas.
In addition to mountains composed of ancient rocks, Kamchatka has very extensive young areas of volcanic origin. They occupy a particularly large area in the south of the peninsula and in its eastern part. A strip of such mountains in the east of the peninsula begins from the famous Avacha group of volcanoes and reaches the upper reaches of the Storozh River, which flows into the Kamchatka Gulf of the Pacific Ocean. All the mountains in the named areas are extinct or active volcanoes, and the flat areas at the foot of the mountains represent lava flows merging with each other. Lava flows erupting from volcanoes often dam rivers and streams. In these places, lakes appear above such dams. The largest of them is Kronotskoye.
The most extensive lowland in the region is Western Kamchatka, stretching along the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk. Its surface is gently inclined towards the sea. Only the southern half of this plain, approximately up to the Krutogorovaya River, can be called a real lowland. The most common areas here are vast, flat swampy areas, above which rise low hills with gentle slopes, covered with birch forest, alder and cedar elfin trees. The severe swampiness of the Western Kamchatka Lowland creates great difficulties for the construction of roads. The rivers in this area have wide but shallow valleys.
The surface of the northern half of the Western Kamchatka Plain is higher and more dissected. Uplands with flat or round watersheds predominate here. Sometimes small mountain ranges up to 800-900 m high rise above the surface of the lowland. In this area, the plain is dissected by a large number of deep rivers. The largest of them are Tigil and Khairyuzova.
The Central Kamchatka Lowland is located in the very middle of the peninsula. It is filled with accumulative (alluvial) deposits and has the shape of a triangle, which expands to the northeast. The top of the triangle is located slightly south of the village of Malki, the base is on the shore of the Uka Gulf of the Bering Sea. The central lowland in the west is limited by the foot of the Sredinny Range, and in the east it extends to the East. The largest river of the peninsula, the Kamchatka, flows over a long distance through the Central Lowland. In the south, the width of the lowland does not exceed several kilometers, in the north it reaches 70-80 kilometers.
Almost the entire area of the lowland is dominated by flat terrain. Only sometimes small hills rise above the surface, dissected by many narrow deep ravines and gullies. Such hills exist near the villages of Milkovo, Kirganik and some others.
In the widest part of the lowland, closer to its eastern edge, there is the Klyuchevskaya group of volcanoes, uniting 13 very large hills, three of which - Klyuchevskaya, Bezymyannaya and Plosky Tolbachik - are active.
Two very large lowlands are located in the very north of the region. This is the Parapolsky valley and the lowland along the Penzhina River valley. The Parapol valley is a vast lowland stretching in a north-easterly direction from the area of the village of Novye Rekinniki to the upper reaches of the Belaya River, the left tributary of the Penzhina. The southern part of the Parapolsky valley is composed of loose sedimentary deposits and is a flat, completely treeless plain, covered with huge swamps and tundras, with a large number of lakes, dissected by a network of wide river valleys. The nature of the relief in the northern lowlands resembles the southern part of Western Kamchatka. They are still poorly researched.
The nature of the relief is of great importance for the life and activities of the population of the region. The most populated parts are the plains. They are more convenient for agriculture, for the construction of settlements, the construction of industrial enterprises and the construction of roads. Mineral deposits are often associated with mountainous areas.
I. V. Melekestsev. Relief
Published from the collection "Kamchatka Region.
Articles and essays on geography" (P-K, 1966).
Despite the fact that many believe that the volcanoes of Kamchatka are not bloodthirsty, in fact, they owe the small number of victims primarily to the fact that people avoid building houses at their feet - there are from 28 to 36 active volcanoes on the Kamchatka Peninsula (depending on the type of classification ) and a huge number of those that are considered asleep or extinct.
But no one wants to take risks, especially considering that volcanic activity here almost never subsides: only at the end of 2014 several Kamchatka hills woke up and began erupting at once - the Shiveluch, Zhupanovsky, Karymsky volcanoes, and others.
What is Kamchatka
The Kamchatka Peninsula is located in the northeast of Eurasia, located on the territory of the Russian Federation. In the west it is washed by the waters of the Sea of Okhotsk, in the east by the Bering Sea, as well as the Pacific Ocean. The peninsula has an oblong shape and stretches from northeast to southwest for about 1200 km, while its greatest width is almost 450 km. Kamchatka is connected to the continent by a narrow (a little less than a hundred kilometers) isthmus.
This peninsula is unique primarily because there are a huge number of volcanoes here - both long-extinct and dormant, and many that are actively active (the volcanoes of Kamchatka occupy about 40% of the entire area of the peninsula).
In total, scientists count about three hundred fire-breathing mountains here, so it is not surprising that volcanic eruptions and associated processes occurring at depth (primarily thermal springs and geysers) shape the local landscape.
The nature of this region is constantly changing, since about three or four volcanoes erupt lava here every year, revealing not only increased volcanic activity, but also causing seismic activity. Volcanoes and geysers of Kamchatka are a fairly typical phenomenon for local residents.
How Kamchatka was formed
The Kamchatka Peninsula belongs to the Pacific Ring of Fire, so the oceanic and continental plates constantly collide with each other here. A huge ridge was formed over the waters of the Sea of Okhotsk and the Kuril-Kamchatka Trench, the total length of which was 2.5 thousand km. In the north of the newly formed ridge, in its wider part, the Kamchatka Peninsula arose, while in the south only individual peaks emerged from the water, forming the Kuril Islands.
It is worth noting that the relief of the peninsula consists of successive lowlands and mountain ranges. It was formed in this way: lava poured out from the bowels of the earth along deep faults and loose volcanic materials (ash, slag) were thrown up, forming high plateaus and volcanoes.
Over time, the volcanoes of Kamchatka have significantly decreased in size. This happened for several reasons:
- Powerful water flows eroded the slopes, forming ravines and gorges;
- The formed mountains were destroyed by wind, sharp temperature fluctuations and even constant melting/freezing of water;
- Glaciers crashed into the peninsula more than once, colliding with the ridges and destroying the rock.
At the same time, the tectonic plates have not stopped their activity and have been colliding with each other for many millennia almost as actively as before. This is one of the reasons that Kamchatka volcanoes have been active throughout the existence of the peninsula, gradually moving from west to east, forming lowlands, two main mountain systems and other hills:
- The Western Kamchatka Lowland, the maximum width of which is about forty meters, hills begin to appear closer to the Sredinny Range.
- The Sredinny Range is one of the main mountain systems of Kamchatka, the length of which is about 900 km and stretches along the watershed of the Sredinny Range, which is located in the center of the peninsula and expands to the south. There is only one active volcano here - Khangar, which last erupted more than 1.5 thousand years ago.
- Central Kamchatka depression with a length of 500 km. The Bystraya and Kamchatka rivers flow here, leading to the Bering Sea.
- The eastern volcanic zone is another, younger mountain system of Kamchatka, stretching from north to south along the entire peninsula. It includes almost all active volcanoes of Kamchatka and about 70% of thermal springs.
Klyuchevskaya Sopka
The height of Klyuchevsky volcano is constantly changing and ranges from 4,750 to 4,850 meters, making it the highest active volcano in Eurasia. It erupts mainly once every 5-6 years and even more often: despite the fact that in 2013 it threw ash to a height of 12 km above sea level, already in January 2015 it woke up again and erupted a six-kilometer column of ash and a huge amount of lava.
Avachinskaya Sopka
Avachinsky volcano is active and located in the north of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky - 25 km. Its height is a little more than 2.7 thousand meters, the top is cone-shaped. Avachinsky volcano has a huge crater, the diameter of which is almost half a thousand meters, the height is 700 meters. In its upper part (together with the nearby Kozelskaya Sopka) there are 10 glaciers, the total area of which exceeds ten kilometers of volcanoes.
Since Avachinsky volcano is located not far from Petropavlovsk, and the climb to it is quite simple and takes 6 to 8 hours along a paved path, it is one of the most visited volcanoes in Kamchatka.
Koryak hill
One of the most famous volcanoes of this mountain system is the Koryaksky volcano, located 35 km from Petropavlovsk, whose height is about 3.5 thousand meters. At the same time, local residents cannot imagine the city without it: in good weather it can be seen from almost any points of the city.
In terms of volcanic activity, the Koryaksky volcano is relatively safe (the last major eruption was observed here in the 50s of the last century).
In 2008, there was a release of volcanic gas that could be seen even from space, and the smoke plume stretched for almost 100 km and reached Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
Recently, the Koryaksky volcano, thanks to its extremely steep slopes, has increasingly attracted the attention of climbers. Another advantage for them is that, due to the difficult climb to this mountain, there are no such massive ascents as on more accessible hills. Therefore, only an experienced, well-prepared climber can climb the Koryaksky volcano, otherwise it could very well end in tragedy.
Karymskaya Sopka
Another interesting mountain of the Eastern Range is the Karymsky volcano, whose height is almost 1.5 thousand m. It is extremely active - since the mid-19th century, geologists have recorded about twenty eruptions here (over the past ten years the Karymsky volcano has erupted twice), while , despite the fact that it is separated from Petropavlovsk by 115 km, in the event of strong emissions, volcanic ash reaches there too.
Mutnovskaya Sopka
Mutnovsky volcano is located eighty kilometers from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Its height is about 2.3 km and it consists of several cones, which over time merged into a single massif. The northwestern cone, despite its small crater (2 by 1.5 m), has all the signs of volcanic activity.
Despite the fact that the Mutnovsky volcano is active (in total, geologists have recorded about 16 eruptions, the last of which was in 2000), it reminds of itself only by the emissions of volcanic gases and the presence of a huge number of thermal springs - this is where one of the largest geothermal deposits is located on our planet.
Zhupanovskaya Sopka
Seventy kilometers from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky (in the southwestern side) is the Zhupanovsky volcano, whose height is almost 3 thousand m. This is one of the most active volcanoes of recent times: in recent years it has been erupting extremely actively, and the release of volcanic ash in January 2015 reached 5 km above sea level. Currently, the Zhupanovsky volcano has an orange aviation hazard code - and all tourists who find themselves near it are advised to leave the area.
Gorely Volcano
Gorely volcano is located in the southwest of Petropavlovsk (80 km). This volcano is active, its height is almost 2 km above sea level and it is located in the south of the peninsula. It consists of eleven superimposed cones and thirty craters, the length of which is three kilometers along the ridge. Some of them are filled with acid, others with fresh water. In total, scientists have recorded about 50 eruptions of this hill.
In former times, the Gorely volcano was so active that the underground magma chamber was completely devastated, which is why the plateau gave way and fell down into the resulting voids, forming the volcanic caldera.
Since the eruptions did not stop, a ridge subsequently grew inside it. At the same time, there was so much lava that it even flowed outside the caldera: one of its flows moved in a north-west direction for 9 km, the other – in a south-west direction – for 15 km.
The last time the Gorely volcano was active was in 2010, and this process was accompanied by seismic activity and significant emissions of steam and gas. Over the past few years, this mountain has been silent and does not show itself in any way. Geologists say that the period of rest between eruptions averages about twenty years, and the longest break was as much as sixty (for this volcano, this is quite a long time).
Kronotskaya Sopka
Kronotsky volcano, whose height exceeds 3,538 meters, and the top has a regular ribbed cone. Eruptions at this stratovolcano occur, however, rarely - the last time this happened was in 1923. Not far from it is the famous Valley of Geysers.
Volcano Shiveluch
Shiveluch Volcano is the northernmost active volcano of the peninsula; it is separated from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky by more than 400 km. It has been extremely active lately: in January 2015, ash emission was about 6 km above sea level, and ash clouds were carried 200 km westward.
Currently, the Shiveluch volcano has a height of 3283 meters, whereas previously it was much higher, but as a result of extremely strong eruptions at the beginning of the 21st century, it became lower by 114 meters. Three years later, the Shiveluch volcano threw volcanic ash and lava from its depths to a height of more than ten kilometers - its activity turned out to be so strong that part of its dome collapsed, but a crevice thirty meters deep also formed in it.
The Kamchatka Territory was formed on July 1, 2007 as a result of the merger of the Kamchatka Region and the Koryak Autonomous Okrug.
In the spring of 2011, Vladimir Ivanovich Ilyukhin took office as governor of the Kamchatka Territory.
Geographical location, climate
The Kamchatka Territory is located in the northeast of the country on the Kamchatka Peninsula, Karaginsky and Commander Islands.
In the north and northwest, the region borders with the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug and the Magadan Region, in the south with the Kuril Islands, in the east Kamchatka is washed by the waters of the Pacific Ocean, in the northeast by the Bering Sea, and in the west by the waters of the Okhotsk Sea.
More than 1,000 Kamchatka volcanoes, including 29 active ones, make the peninsula a region of active volcanism.
The tops of the mountain ranges are covered with year-round glaciers and snowfields, giving rise to thousands of streams and rivers, into which the main natural wealth of Kamchatka - Pacific salmon - comes to spawn.
The Kamchatka waters of the Sea of Okhotsk, Bering Sea and the Pacific Ocean are among the most productive fishing zones of the World Ocean; natural reproduction of over 2 million fish is provided here.
tons of biological resources of the seas.
Climate
The climatic features of the peninsula are determined by the proximity of vast expanses of water, which influence seasonal temperature fluctuations and give the climate of the coastal areas of the peninsula a marine character.
Cold currents of the Okhotsk and Bering Seas reduce average annual air temperatures, which has a particularly unfavorable effect in the warm season.
The climate of the peninsula is oceanic, relatively mild, with a large amount of precipitation - up to 2000 mm/year (the height of the snow cover reaches 2.5 - 3.0 m), a long frost-free period - up to 140 days.
The average long-term air temperature in January is -16.4°C, in July +13°C.
In the southern part of the peninsula there are no severe frosts in winter and hot days in summer.
Summers here are cool with many foggy and rainy days.
As you move north and deeper into the peninsula, the climate becomes more continental, the influence of the large land areas of the Asian continent and the protection of the ridges from the influence of the seas are more pronounced. All these climatic factors significantly shorten the normal duration of summer for these latitudes and lengthen winter.
Therefore, most excursions to Kamchatka are organized in early summer, and only a few companies offer trips to the peninsula in winter.
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Another feature of the climate of Kamchatka, located in a zone of intense cyclonic activity, is strong winds.
Cyclones bring with them heavy rainfall. The largest number of them occur in the southern regions of the peninsula, where up to 1200 mm of precipitation falls per year.
Territory, population
The area of the region exceeds 464 thousand square meters. km (2.8% of the territory of the Russian Federation).
The permanent population is 345 thousand.
people (0.2% of the Russian population).
The number of indigenous peoples of the North is 15,475 people.
Population density - 0.7 people per 1 sq. km.
The Kamchatka Territory includes 68 municipalities: 3 urban districts, 11 municipal districts, 5 urban settlements, 49 rural settlements.
Natural resource potential
The large extent and special geographical location of Kamchatka determines the diversity of its natural conditions.
The southern and central parts of the peninsula contain the most significant and unique natural attractions available to lovers of tourist travel.
There are unique recreational resources for the development of tourism in Kamchatka. Mild snowy winters and snow-covered slopes of volcanoes even in summer make it possible to organize year-round ski tourism and build ski resorts.
Among the many ski resorts in Kamchatka, five have slopes whose characteristics meet the requirements of international standards.
A stable snow cover on the slopes forms in early November and persists until early May. From the end of May until the end of October, ski resorts operate on the slopes of the Avachinsky and Kozelsky volcanoes.
Thermal springs and natural parks are attractive to guests of the peninsula.
The Kamchatka Valley of Geysers was recognized in 2008 as one of the 7 wonders of Russia.
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Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the administrative and cultural center of the Kamchatka Territory, the oldest city in the Far East with a long history and heroic past - an outpost of Russia on the Pacific Ocean.
This is a port city and the “air gate” of Kamchatka, connecting the region with major cities of Russia.
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky has the main concentration of hotels, restaurants, theaters, museums, and historical monuments; the beginning of all roads leading deep into the peninsula; from here there is regular bus service with the largest settlements of Kamchatka.
The proximity to the city of the Paratunskaya resort area with hot springs, sanatoriums and the best recreation centers in Kamchatka, the picturesque Avachinskaya Bay and the Avacha group of volcanoes created here the necessary conditions for the development of Kamchatka tourism.
The most favorable time for summer travel in Kamchatka is from July 1 to September 20, for hiking in the highlands - from July 15 to the end of August.
Fishing industry
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The basis of the territory's economy is the fishing industry.
In the territorial structure of the Russian economy, the regional fishery complex produces 20% of aquatic biological resources and produces 16% of the country's commercial food and fish products.
Mining complex
In the Kamchatka Territory, 12 deposits of thermal and thermal energy waters have been explored, 10 deposits and 22 promising areas of indigenous gold have been identified and studied to varying degrees.
There are residual reserves of alluvial platinum, and the occurrence of primary platinum ore with predicted resources of 30 tons is being studied.
Kamchatka is one of the largest nickel-bearing provinces, in terms of the scale of mineralization it ranks 3-4 in the world among ore deposits of this class.
The predicted land resources of the Kamchatka Peninsula in terms of hydrocarbon potential are estimated at 150 million.
tons of oil and about 800 billion cubic meters of gas.
The start of oil production in pilot production mode is planned for 2013. A gas pipeline to the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, with a length of 387 km, is under construction.
The region is provided with all types of building materials, with the exception of raw materials for cement production. More than 50 deposits have been explored for the production of building materials in the Kamchatka Territory.
Agriculture
70.2 thousand people live in the rural areas of the region, or 20.3% of the total population of the Kamchatka Territory. The average annual number of people employed in agricultural production, excluding citizens running private households, is 7.2 thousand.
Agricultural production sectors form five main food markets, among which the markets for eggs, potatoes and vegetables can fully meet the needs of the Kamchatka Territory with products of their own production.
The markets for dairy and meat products, due to technological reasons, are provided with products of their own production by 34.2% and 11.4%, respectively.
The volume of the dairy products market in the Kamchatka Territory is about 47 thousand tons, of which locally produced products account for 34%.
The number of reindeer is about 40 thousand heads.
Standards of living
Since 2002, there has been a steady trend of increasing living standards of the population.
What are the features of natural conditions on the Kamchatka Peninsula?
Average per capita cash income more than doubled over six years, from 5,915.6 rubles in 2002 to 15,553.4 rubles in 2007. The poverty level indicator, characterized by the number of people with incomes below the subsistence level, has decreased.
The share of the population with incomes below the subsistence level in 2002 was 34.3%, in 2007 - 22.8% of the total population.
The government of the Kamchatka Territory has identified a set of investment projects, the implementation of which will contribute to the socio-economic development of Kamchatka, ensure proper growth in the well-being of the population, stabilize the demographic situation and create conditions for the development of the region.
Projects are focused not only on the needs of the domestic market, but also on the development of interregional and international cooperation.
Among the projects already being implemented is the construction of a cascade of small hydroelectric power stations on the river. Tolmacheva, construction of two sections of the Milkovo - Klyuchi - Ust-Kamchatsk highway.
The implementation of the assigned tasks will contribute to improving indicators of socio-economic development and raising the standard of living of the population of the Kamchatka Territory.
Materials used from the official website of the Government of the Kamchatka Territory
Mountains and ranges of Kamchatka
A mountain range is an elongated elevation of terrain with pronounced slopes that intersect in its upper region.
Kamchatka Mountains
The highest points form a line that extends in the longitudinal direction and is called the ridge. This ridge divides the ridge into 2 slopes and serves as a kind of watershed. A center line is drawn along the ridge, which is displayed on orographic maps.
The shape, length and height of the ridges depend on the time of their origin, historical development, as well as on the rocks that make up them. According to the shape of the axial line, they are divided into straight and slightly curved.
The largest of the mountain ranges have spurs, so-called branches, expressed in the form of small ridges.
Collectively, all the massifs make up a mountain system, and the places where they meet are called the Mountain Knot. Buildings that are located next to each other create a mountain range.
Kamchatka Ranges
The largest massifs of the Kamchatka Territory include Valaginsky, Ganalsky, Vostochny, Vachkazhets, Kumroch, as well as the Penzhinsky and Sredinny ridges.
The Ganal Range is a mountain range that rises sharply above the surrounding area with steep tectonic faults on its slopes, characterized by a rugged ridge, and formed as a result of the rapid movement of tectonic plates.
The vegetation of this area is similar to the Alpine, and the fauna is inhabited by mountain sheep and gophers.
The length of the Valaginsky ridge reaches 150 km, and the maximum height is Mount Kudryash (1794 m).
The rocks that make up the massif are slate, granite and volcanic lava. This mountain formation has steep slopes that are covered with Kamchatka birch forests. The Valaginsky, or rather the northeastern slope of Mount Skalistaya (2016 m), gives rise to the 100-kilometer Kavycha River.
The eastern ridge in Kamchatka is called an entire mountain system, which consists of several separate buildings.
The slopes of the Eastern Range are very steep on the western side and gentle on the eastern side. Its southern part is occupied by the Ganalskie Vostryaki, the middle part is occupied by the Valaginsky ridge, and in the northeast is the Kumroch ridge.
The total length reaches 600 km, and the width is 120 km. The highest point is the Kizimen volcano with a height of 2485 m.
Vachkazhets is a whole mountain range located in the southern part of the peninsula. The highest point is the mountain of the same name, 1556 m high. Mount Vachkazhets belongs to an ancient volcano, which a very long time ago was divided into three parts by a strong eruption: Mount Letnyaya Poperechnaya with a height of 1417 m, Mount Vachkazhtsy - 1500 m and the Vachkazhets volcano.
Within the first of them, two large cirques of volcanic origin have been preserved to this day, serving as a reminder of what was once a single volcano. The base camp is located here, and the area itself is conducive to trekking, bird watching and admiring vegetation.
The length of the Kumroch mountain range is approximately 220 km, and the highest point is the Shish volcano, 2346 m high.
The eastern side of the building is cut through the valley of the Kamchatka River.
The Penzhinsky massif is located in the Koryak Highlands. On the one hand, it is protected by the Parapolsky Valley, on the other by the valley of the Penzhina River. The length of the ridge is approximately 420 km.
The Sredinny Range is the main mountain range on the peninsula. It stretches across the entire Kamchatka, and its length reaches 1200 km. It contains many volcanoes and simply volcanic buildings.
There are also lava plateaus and individual massifs covered with glaciers. In the Sredinny Range, Malkinsky, Bystrinsky and Kozyrevsky can be separately distinguished. The highest point is the Ichinsky volcano, 3621 m high. Many rivers flow down from the slopes, and the lower part is covered with forests of dwarf dwarf and stone birch.
The Middle Belt includes 28 passes and 11 mountain peaks. The ridge itself is asymmetrical. Its western part descends into the Western Kamchatka Lowland, and the eastern part ends very abruptly towards the Central Kamchatka Lowland.
I would especially like to mention such mountains as Mount Camel, Goryachaya, Polennitsa, and Mishennaya Sopka.
Mount Camel is recognized as a natural monument and is located on the territory of Nalychevo Park.
The mountain was named because it has two peaks. The approximate age of the mountain is 10,000 years. She also annually participates in the “Volcano Day in Kamchatka” holiday.
Mount Goryachaya is noted for its location between the Paratunka River and the Karamshina River. The mountain is of igneous origin. Due to its close location to thermal areas, the vegetation on its territory is constantly changing.
Mount Polennitsa is officially included in the UNESCO World Natural and Cultural Heritage List in the “Volcanoes of Kamchatka” category.
Mishennaya Sopka is one of the remarkable mountains of Kamchatka, because...
Thanks to its location, the peak itself offers picturesque views of the Avachu and Koryaksky volcanoes, as well as the entire Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
The mountains will meet you as you approach the Kamchatka Peninsula and will surround you wherever you go.
Choose our tours and enjoy the view.
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About Kamchatka
In the Soviet Union, Kamchatka was completely closed to both Russians and foreigners.
Up and reefs
Since it was a national treasure, it was closed primarily for government security and partly to preserve its natural beauty. Thanks to this, Kamchatka remains untouched and is waiting for you to discover it yourself.
geography
The Kamchatka Peninsula is closer to Alaska than Moscow (9 time zones from Moscow).
Lying between the Pacific Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, it is a lonely, remote region of Russia. The length from north to south is about 1500 km, the area is 470 thousand square meters. km.
In the central part of Kamchatka there are two mountain ranges - the middle and eastern hills.
Among them is the central Kamchatka Valley. One of the unexplored places on Earth, Kamchatka is known as the “land of fire and ice” due to its 414 glaciers and 160 volcanoes, of which 29 are active. Compressed magma still comes from volcanoes, and excursions of lush greenery alternate with huge volcanic ash and cinders.
The geysers and molten sulfur that continually shoot through the continuous pairs of volcanic cones create an unrealistic, moon-like image. The Kamchatka rivers are home to one of the world's largest salmon populations.
History of the region
Local residents (Itelmen, Chetny, Koryak, Aleut, Chukotka) were the first settlers on the Kamchatka Peninsula. The study of eastern countries with Russians began in the 16th and 17th centuries.
Russian goats were only 60 years old to explore the Urals and Siberia in the Pacific Ocean. F. Popov and S. Dezhnev were the first people who went on ships around the Chukchi peninsula and opened the strait between Asia and America. The study of the Far East continued by V. Atlasov. He contributed to the connection between Kamchatka and the Russian Empire. With the passage of 65 Cossacks and 60 Yukaghirs, he arrived first in Kamchatka.
Russian King Peter the Great signed a decree on preparing the first expedition across Siberia to Okhotsk and Kamchatka. There were three expeditions in total that helped explore the Pacific Ocean and Kamchatka.
In 1740, two ships, “St. Peter” and “St. Paul,” under the leadership of V. Bering and A. Chirikov, arrived in Avachinsky Bay and a small town was created, called Petropavlovsk in honor of the two saints Peter and Paul. To settle the new countries, the Russian government forced them to move to Kamchatka.
Among the researchers here are Charles Clarke, James Cook, and La Perouse.
In 1854, Petropavlovsk was invaded by the Anglo-French squadron.
Although the defenders were sparse, numbering about 1,000, their courage and vengeance led to victory. During and after World War II, Kamchatka developed as a militarized region. The submarines that are here are on border patrol. This is one of the reasons why Kamchatka was closed for so long to both foreigners and Russians.
Only in 1990 it was possible to visit the Kamchatka region. Today Petropavlovsk is a modern city with 250 thousand inhabitants.
The climate of the Kamchatka Peninsula is very unusual and depends on the influence of the oceans and seas surrounding its coastline, monsoons and covers the territory from north to south.
During your trip, you will be able to experience many climate zones, including the seashore on the coast, the continental center and the Arctic zone in the north of the peninsula.
Summer here is a time of rapid growth and flowering as plants and animals rush to complete their annual activity before the onset of winter. Summer days are long. During summer rains there may be rain and snow on the ground, especially in the mountains.
| January | February | march | April | Maybe | June | July | August | saint | October | new | December | |
| Temperature in Petropavlovsk (°C) | -4.5 / -8,4 |
-5 / -11 | -2 / -10 | -5 / + 1 | +2 / + 8 | +6 / +15 |
+10 / +20 |
+12 / +20 |
+8 / +15 |
+7 / -0 | -4 / -0 | -4 / -9 |
| Average temperature in Milkovo (°C) | -21,4 | -18,3 | -12,5 | -2,8. | 5 | 11,3 | 22,1 | 23,6 | 12,6 | 0.2 | -10.8 | -18,6 |
| Precipitation (mm per month) in Petropavlovsk | — | — | — | 42 | 20 | 40 | 60 | 84 | 80 | 120 | 70 | — |
| snow | 100 | 67 | 140 | 40 | 40 | — | — | — | — | — | 70 | 96 |
| Sunglasses/sunglasses | 09: 00- 19:00 |
08: 00- 19:00 |
07: 00- 19:30 |
07: 00- 20:30 |
07: 00- 22:00 |
06: 30- 23:30 |
06: 00- 22:00 |
06: 00- 22:00 |
07: 00- 21:00 |
07: 30- 20:00 |
08: 00- 18:00 |
09: 00- 18:00 |
Flora and fauna
The local flora is characterized by tall grass (up to 3-3.5 m) and a vertical arrangement of plant areas.
From the mountain base to its peaks there are changes in vegetation. Stone birch, ash, cedar stems, alder, and poplar grow at the foot of the mountain. Large areas of the coast are occupied by dog rose. Here you will find a lot of delicious and healthy strawberries such as fakes, flowers, blueberries, cranberries and others.
The flora includes 60 species of mammals and 170 species of birds. Animals on the peninsula differ from animals on the continents in their large size.
For example, the brown bear (weighing about 700-1000 kg, length 2.5-3 m) lives throughout the peninsula. Other representatives of the local fauna are sables, rabbits, rogues, polar foxes, wolves, marmots, and muskrats. The Canadian drummer and the coon were brought to the peninsula for acclimatization. Lynx and squirrels moved to Kamchatka from the north at the beginning of the last century. Wildlife also features animals such as the American Hornbill, with horns extending up to 5 meters, bighorn sheep, which live only in the mountains and never go below 600 meters.
In Kamchatka they contain a large number of different birds: swan, stalked sea eagle, eagle, bleacher, tundra partridge, moth, cormorant, scorpion, duck, seagull, geese and others.
population
Most of Kamchatka's population lives in the coastal areas of the peninsula.
Itelmens, Evens, Koryaks, Chukchis, Aleuts are the autochthonous inhabitants of Kamchatka.
The Ilemians live on the western coast of the peninsula, as the oldest inhabitants of Kamchatka.
There are 1,450 people who follow the traditional way of life and speak their own language. Most of them are concentrated in the Tigil region and the village of Kovran. They mainly engage in hunting, salmon fishing, and plant gathering. In winter they use dog sleds as their traditional means of transport.
There are about 9,000 people on the peninsula who were born due to the marriage of Russians and Icelanders, but do not have official status as natives.
They live in the Kamchatka Valley and in the south of the peninsula (the cities of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Yelizovo).
Koryaks(7200 people) mainly live in the north-west (Koryak Autonomous Okrug) - the village of Palana. Koryaks are divided into nomadic and sessile. The main group of nomadic nomads is reindeer herder. Fishing and hunting marine mammals are the main occupation of the sitting Koryak people. Both nomads and settled Koryaks mature with fur.
Evens(1490) lives in the Bystrinsky region - the settlements of Esso, Anavgai, "Lamuts" (another name for citizenship) are engaged in breeding deer, hunting and hunting.
Dogs are not used in the belt, only for hunting.
Aleuts(390 people) lives on Bering Island, Nikolskoye village, the traditional group of these people is fishing, hunting marine mammals, picking strawberries and plants.
Chukchi(1530 people), despite the fact that the autochthonous inhabitants of Chukotka partially inhabited the northern part of the Kamchatka Peninsula.
They are divided into nomadic-reindeer alders and hunters at headquarters.
Kamchatka Krai located in northeast Russia. It covers the area of the Kamchatka Peninsula, part of the land north of the peninsula, as well as the Karaginsky and Commander Islands (Bering and Medny).
From the west it was washed by the waters of the Sea of Okhotsk, and from the east by the waters of the Pacific Ocean and its Bering Sea.
The territory of the Kamchatka Territory is 472.3 thousand square kilometers. Kamchatka Territory is part of the Far Eastern Federal District.
equity Kamchatka Territory is the site of the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky military holiday.
There are two more cities in the province: Elizovo and Vilyuchinsk, the remaining settlements are villages and towns.
The population of the Kamchatka region, according to Federal State Statistics for 2013, is 320.5 thousand people. The main population lives in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky - about 180 thousand people (as of 2010).
The Kamchatka region was founded on July 1, 2007 in connection with the merger of Kamchatka and the Koryak Autonomous Region.
Kamchatka Territory consists of 11 municipal districts.
These are Aleutsky, Bystrinsky, Yelizovo, Milkovsky, Sobolevsky, Ust-Bolsheretsky, Ust-Kamchatsky and Koryak districts: Karaginsky, Olyutorsky, Penzhinsky and Tigilsky.
Freight transport communication Kamchatka region with the continent - air and sea. There are no land roads between Kamchatka and the continent.
Passenger traffic with the mainland is carried out only by air; sea transport of passengers, previously carried out by ship from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky to Vladivostok, is now (as of 2015) absent.
The main airport of Kamchatka is Yelizovo (20 km from the entrance to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky).
Therefore, passenger liners depart to the west - to Russia and to the east - to Alaska.
length The Kamchatka Territory from south to north is 1200 kilometers. Local transport is carried out by sea (along the eastern and western coasts of Kamchatka and the Commander Islands - in the Aleut region), as well as by road from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in the regions of Southern and Central Kamchatka.
The northernmost regions of the region do not have a land road. There is air transport between Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and large villages in the region. Kamchatka is not a railway.
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky- a city without a metro, trolley, tram, funicular.
The main city bus is the bus. Of course, there are taxis, and there are buses (locally called “mikriks”). Lots of personal vehicles. They consider Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky the second largest automaker in Russia.
The buildings in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky are mostly low: five-story, because there is an earthquake zone here.
But in recent years, houses have been built on the 12th and 16th floors, which are designed to withstand a possible earthquake of 10 points. I often shook here.
Regular shots are 3 points, but also 4 points and higher. The strongest last earthquake in November 1971 was felt in various buildings of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky as 7-9 points.
(The footage was then in other parts of Kamchatka, especially shaking in Ust-Kamchatsk).
The capital of Kamchatka is located in the hills, along the coast of the picturesque Avacha Bay (here the longer word is “bay”), overlooking 9 volcanoes.
These are Avachinsky (or simply Avacha), Koryaksky, Kozelsky (the listed volcanoes are “home” here), Aag, Arik and Vilyuchinsky, Gorely, Mutnovsky, located on the opposite side of Avachinsky Bay.
Koryak and Avachinsky volcanoes are active. From Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Elizovo - 2-3 km. Over the years, townspeople have observed outbreaks of Koryak and Avachinsky.
Truly, they are not strong, they did not threaten the cities, but they struck. Avacha feels herself every day. However, against its crater “it does not surpass human ways,” and even every year in August there is a huge rise of everything to come. Participate in the growth of hundreds of people, from little ones on the shoulders of their parents to people of honorable age.
Kamchatka- a rich country.
Marine resources in the region are of global importance (fish, including salmon, coming to the rivers of the peninsula, seafood, including crabs). There are huge rookeries of marine mammals (sea lions, sea otters, moor, seals). At the depths of various minerals (platinum, gold, mercury, nickel, gas, oil, drinking water, coal, etc.) they lie. In central Kamchatka there are forests rich in forest and fur animals.
Russian and foreign tourists are attracted by exotic Kamchatka.
This is the unique beauty of the landscapes; carrying hunting (Kamchatka brown bear is the largest bear in the world); rafting on board along fast mountain rivers and fishing; the rise of volcanoes and observation of the outbreak of any, and sometimes two or three of the 30 active Kamchatka volcanoes; ice skating in the summer on skis and snowboards from the snowy slopes in the mountains; bathing in healing thermal mineral springs; Active birds of the colony, hatcheries of marine animals are the Uzon Caldera and the beautiful valley geysers - one of the seven wonders of Russia, as well as the opportunity to get acquainted with the interesting ancient culture of the indigenous people in the north - Koryak, Itelmen Evens - to explore national villages and camps.
Recreation Resources Kamchatka is protected.
More than 14% of the territory of the Kamchatka Territory has been preserved. These are natural reserves of national, regional and local significance, sanctuaries, natural monuments, and natural parks.
Kamchatka, this unique corner of the planet, with its untouched nature, protects something. Many plants, fungi found on Kamchatka animals are listed in the Red Book of Russia and Kamchatka in two volumes of the Red Book (Volume 1: Red Books of Kamchatka, Volume 2: Red Book of Kamchatka plants, fungi, thermophilic microorganisms).
Kamchatka is known not only for its natural resources, beautiful landscape and those that affect the average person by natural phenomena such as volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, water seizures and steam geysers, salmon rune.
Kamchatka is known for its history.
Was anyone surprised that Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, this remote city from central Russia, received the title "Place of Military Glory" in 2011?
In general, this city gained its fame for more than a century, when the whole world was surprised and impressed by the feat of Kamchatka and some of the military crew of Petropavlovsk.
All newspapers began to talk about the only victory of Russia in the Crimean War in 1853-1856 - about the victory of the defenders of the city and the real defenders of the Fatherland. They did not surrender to the Russian city of the Anglo-French squadron, which in August 1854 entered Avacha Bay and tried to land.
Six ships of the enemy squadron left Kamchatka in disgrace: Russian weapons of the Russian spirit were stronger than many pistol invaders. Courageously, selflessly defending the city, they called it - bribing Petropavlovsk and forever imprinting in the history of Russian victories over those hiding on Russian soil, as well as this pearl of Russia, like Kamchatka.
Half a century after the defense of Peter and Paul in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905. The Kamchatka police defended their land in battle and did not allow them to capture other intruders - the Japanese.
And forty years later, in August 1945, the sailors and soldiers of Kamchatka fought for the liberation of the Japanese militarists of the neighboring islands - and Shumshu Paramushiro (the northernmost of the Kuril Islands).
A military operation called the Kuril Landing was carried out by forces from the Kamchatka region, mobilizing thousands of people mobilized throughout the Kamchatka region. The victory of Russian soldiers in the Kuril Islands decided the outcome of the Russo-Japanese War: on September 2, 1945, Japan surrendered. And the Second World War ended.
In the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, in the cities of Kamchatka, there are many historical monuments for the glory of Russian weapons.
Kamchatka fought and always won!
Kamchatka may be far from Moscow. Make it fringe. Let its economic development, improvement of settlements and comfort of people in life lag behind other regions. This is the fate of the periphery. But everyone knows about Kamchatka.
Ask someone: “What is Kamchatka?”
And you will receive the answer: “This is the highest volcano in Klyuchevskoye in Eurasia,” or: “This is the Valley of Geysers,”
or: “This is red caviar,” or: “This is the researcher Vladimir Atlasov, the scientist Stepan Krasheninnikov, the military governor Vasily Zavoiko,” Or maybe also: “This is the last table in the class,”
Well, even if this is the answer. But the answer! Because everyone knows about Kamchatka.
This information has been summarized on the local history website "Kamchatka Krai"
Ostroumov A. G. What is the actual area of the peninsula (notes of a local historian)
It would seem that such a ridiculous question is inconvenient to ask.
The area of our peninsula has probably been measured and remeasured more than once; of course, it is well known. It is enough to open any reference book, the Great Soviet Encyclopedia or one of the books containing a physical and geographical description of Kamchatka to obtain the necessary information.
Well, let's look through some of the books. Already the first of them give unexpected surprises. It turns out that finding the answer to this question is more difficult than it seemed at first. Gradually, surprise gave way to bewilderment.
How so?
In the famous book about Kamchatka by E. L. Lyubimova, published in 1961, we find that the area of the peninsula is 350 thousand square kilometers.
She notes that the northern border of the peninsula should be drawn along the line of Rekinniki Bay - Anapka Bay.
G. F. Starikov and P. N. Dyakonov in their book about the forests of the peninsula (1954) write that the northern geographical border of Kamchatka is considered to be a conventional line running from Rekinninskaya Bay, on the west coast, to the south along the Rekinniki River and then along the Alkhovayam River , flowing into Anapka Bay, on the east coast.
They name latitude and longitude, but there is no size of the peninsula's area in their book.
In the collection "Kamchatka Region" and in the book by N. N. Ermakov "Geography of the Kamchatka Region", published in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in 1966 and 1974, there is no information about the area of our peninsula.
The article “Storm is rocking Kamchatka” (Izvestia newspaper No. 45 of February 22, 1980) states that the area of the peninsula is 350 thousand square kilometers.
But not everyone thinks so. These were, if you like, maximalists. However, along with them, there are also minimalists.
In the well-known reference book on the surface water resources of Kamchatka (1966), they insist that at the northern border of the peninsula, drawn from the mouth of the Rekinniki River to the mouth of the Vyvenka River, its area does not exceed 250 thousand square kilometers.
It is enough to look at the map to understand that the discrepancy of 100 thousand square kilometers is difficult to explain.
Let's take a look at the major work "Geology of the USSR", published in 1964.
In the section “Physical and Geographical Description,” B.V. Styrikovich indicates that the northern border of the peninsula can be considered a line running from Rekinninskaya Bay along the Rekinniki River and further along the Anapka River, which flows into Uala Bay. Within these limits, the area of the Kamchatka Peninsula is about 270 thousand square kilometers.
The location of the northern border of the peninsula varies among different authors, but is relatively insignificant.
The resulting “surplus” of territory cannot in any way be estimated at an area of 80–100 thousand square kilometers. In fact, it is many times smaller.
But let’s not despair and turn to the third edition of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia.
From the article by S. L. Kushev and V. I. Tikhonov (volume 2, 1973) we learn that the area of the peninsula is 370 thousand square kilometers.
Where is the truth?
In the book by I.S.
Gurevich and K.G. Kuzakov “Koryak National District” (1960) and some others provide information about the areas of individual administrative districts of the Kamchatka region. Thus, the total area of the Olyutorsky and Penzhinsky districts, located mainly outside the peninsula, is about 200 thousand square kilometers. And the area of the entire Kamchatka region, as you know, is 472.3 thousand square kilometers.
Simple arithmetic operations lead us to the conclusion that the area of the peninsula is close to 270 thousand square kilometers.
However, let us be distrustful and resort to a well-known specialist, quite simple and accurate, weight method for determining areas using analytical balances.
For greater reliability, we will perform our manipulations, as expected, several times. It turns out that within the boundaries indicated by B.V. Styrikovich, the area of the Kamchatka Peninsula is really about 270 thousand square kilometers.
Consequently, the area of the peninsula occupies 57 percent of the territory of the Kamchatka region.
Published based on the book
"Across Kamchatka - from Cape Lopatka to the Khatyrka River
(notes of a naturalist, local historian, letnab)"
(Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, 1997).
Kamchatka is a peninsula that is one of the richest territories in the world in terms of recreational and natural resources. Glaciers and volcanoes, mineral and thermal springs, the famous Valley of Geysers and fauna and flora untouched by civilization in most places have created the preconditions for the development of sport fishing and eco-tourism. Of interest not only to domestic but also to foreign travelers are turbulent rivers and active volcanoes, mountain peaks over four thousand meters high and the waters of coastal seas with rich ichthyofauna.
Geographical position
The Kamchatka Peninsula on the map of Russia is located in its easternmost part. Its territory stretches from northwest to southeast for more than one and a half thousand kilometers.
The geographical position of the Kamchatka Peninsula on the map is between Chukotka and the Kuril Islands. From the west its territory is washed by the Sea of Okhotsk, and from the east by the waters of the Bering Sea and the Pacific Ocean.
This entire territory with its adjacent areas is the Kamchatka Territory - a subject of the Russian Federation. Moreover, the total area of this region is 472.3 thousand square meters. Administrative center of the subject -
Climate
Kamchatka is a peninsula whose weather conditions are influenced by vast expanses of water. Cold currents of the seas (Bering and Okhotsk) significantly reduce the average annual temperatures of air masses. This has a particularly unfavorable effect on the warm season.
The absence of severe frosts in winter and heat in summer are the weather conditions that are characteristic of the southern part of the territory under consideration. The Kamchatka Peninsula, whose coastal climate is maritime, is characterized by a large number of rainy and foggy days.
Moving deeper and further north, you can notice a change in weather conditions. The climate of these areas is more continental. It is influenced by the landmass of the Asian continent. This territory is protected from sea air masses by mountain ranges. These factors influence the lengthening of winter, characteristic of these latitudes, and the shortening of the summer period.
Another feature of the Kamchatka climate is the location of the territory in a zone of cyclonic intense activity. Due to this, strong winds often blow on the peninsula. Cyclones bring precipitation with them. Most of them fall in the southern regions of Kamchatka (up to 1200 millimeters during the year).
Natural phenomena
Kamchatka is a peninsula on which a special combination of climatic and physical-geographical conditions contributes to the emergence of dangerous hydrological processes. These include mudflows and snow avalanches, catastrophic and sharp rises in river levels after large amounts of rain, as well as channel deformations, ice jams, etc.
Kamchatka is a peninsula that is part of the so-called fire belt, which includes volcanic ridges. Mountain-building and other geological processes often occur here. They result in earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
Relief
The entire surface of the Kamchatka Peninsula is a territory in which there is an alternation of parallel strips of volcanic ridges and lowlands. Thus, along the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk there are hummocky tundras, swamps and ridges overgrown with forest. This is the territory in which the Western Kamchatka Lowland is located. To the east of it stretches the largest mountain system of the peninsula - the Sredinny Range. It is dissected by gorges and river valleys. The northern part of the Sredinny Range has preserved traces of active volcanic activity, which was observed here relatively recently.
The highest point of this mountain range is This is an active volcano (3621 m), the top of which is covered by a powerful ice cap. The Kamchatka Peninsula, the relief of which behind the Sredinny Ridge turns into a vast depression, carries the water of two rivers - Kamchatka and Bystraya - from this territory to the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk. Next is the Vostochny ridge. It stretches for six hundred kilometers. The Kamchatka Peninsula, the relief of which in this area includes a mountain range, is represented by the following ridges:
Ganalsky, having pointed tops and jagged ridges. - Valaginsky, which includes the active Kizimen volcano (the highest point is located at an altitude of 2485 km); - Kumroch and Tumrok (in the north).
The next zone of the peninsula is most visited by tourists. This is where the Eastern Volcanic Region is located. The territory stretches from the southern part of the peninsula (from Cape Lopatki) to the northern. This area ends (he is active).
The Kamchatka Peninsula, whose volcanoes are concentrated precisely in this territory, is very attractive to tourists. The natural attractions of the region are concentrated here, as well as most of the cold mineral and thermal springs.
Rivers of Kamchatka
The peninsula is characterized by a rather dense hydrographic grid. A little more than six thousand both large and small rivers flow through its territory. Basically, their length does not exceed two hundred kilometers. Only seven carry their waters more than 300 km. The largest river on the peninsula is Kamchatka. It has a length of more than seven hundred and fifty kilometers.
Almost all rivers are turbulent. Many of them have rapids and waterfalls. The largest rivers of the peninsula are Bolshaya and Kamchatka. They are navigable only in the lower part near the mouth.
In volcanic areas there are so-called dry rivers. Water appears in their beds only when the snow melts.
Lakes of Kamchatka
The peninsula's numerous reservoirs have different origins. Lakes in lowlands and floodplain areas of rivers are often swampy. One of these is Nalychevo. At higher elevations, the lakes occupy depressions of hilly terrain. The largest of them are the Dvukhyurtochnoye and Nachikinskoye reservoirs.
Many lakes were formed as a result of volcanic activity. Some of them (Karymskoye, Kurilskoye, etc.) are located in depressions that arose when certain sections of the earth's crust subsided, or in explosion craters. There are lakes located in volcanic craters (Kangar, Ksudach, Uzon), as well as in tectonic depressions (Askabachye).
The largest reservoir on the peninsula is a reservoir formed in a river valley that was blocked by lava flows. This
Flora
Where the Kamchatka Peninsula is located, strong winds blow and there is a short summer. These factors, as well as the isolation of the territory from the mainland and loose volcanic soils, gave a special character to the vegetation of the harsh region. The species composition of the flora is not particularly rich. There are just over a thousand fern and flowering plants here. Among them there are species that are not found anywhere else.
Forests on the peninsula occupy one third of its area. White and stone birch, alder and spruce, Kuril larch and willow, rowan and poplar, hawthorn and bird cherry grow here. Berry bushes are represented by honeysuckle and lingonberry, blueberry and crowberry. Cranberries are found in swampy areas.
In high mountain areas, dwarf species of alder, birch and willow grow. Shelomaynik is widespread. On the high mountain plateaus you can find only unpretentious tundra vegetation.
Fauna
The natural areas of the Kamchatka Peninsula are favored by bighorn sheep and brown bears, wild deer and elk. Here you can find marmot and hare, muskrat and otter, sable and mink, fox and arctic fox, wolverine and squirrel, lynx and wolf. Steller sea lions and seals, as well as bearded seals, live in the coastal areas of the seas. On the Commander Islands you can find seals and sea otters.
Among the birds there are species that remain on the peninsula in winter. However, some birds fly to warmer climes. The list of permanent residents in these places includes wood grouse and golden eagles, crows and cuckoos, eagles and magpies. You can find wintering swans on the peninsula.
The numerous rivers of Kamchatka are constantly inhabited by grayling and char, as well as mykiss. Salmon fish come here to spawn. In some lakes you can find crucian carp. In the seas surrounding the peninsula, flounder and cod, pollock and herring are caught.
Tourism
Kamchatka Territory is a unique mountainous region of Russia. Here you can see ecologically clean wildlife with fauna and flora untouched by human activity. The attention of travelers will be attracted by the unique phenomena of the peninsula, natural monuments and the original culture of its few nationalities.
Tourist routes in Kamchatka, as a rule, pass through areas isolated from civilization, where wild mountain nature is located. There is a high probability that the weather will suddenly worsen, hurricane winds will blow and heavy rain will fall.
Features of holidays in Kamchatka
Those who are planning to spend their holidays in the easternmost region of Russia should keep in mind that there is no possibility of access to the main tourist sites by public transport. Any means (air or ground) can only be delivered individually to its destination. In this case, you will also need to pay for the return flight. If you decide to relax on your own, then keep in mind that Kamchatka is the territory of modern mountain building processes. On the peninsula there are constant changes in relief and a lot of magnetic nature. That is why you should not rely on maps and satellite navigation when passing routes. In the event of an emergency or an emergency, you can only rely on yourself.
A special feature of holidays in Kamchatka is that there are no regular short excursions and routes on the peninsula. The only exceptions are small cruise trips along Azachinskaya Bay. Helicopter excursions with a visit to the Valley of Geysers are also available here.
The eastern ridge was formed thanks to the mountain formations, Kumroch, Ganalskaya and Valaginskaya. In ancient times, these places were under an extensive cover of basaltic lavas. During the Middle Pleistocene, the development of horst structures began, lava covers began to erode, and stratovolcanoes appeared in their place, which in turn quickly ceased their activity and were destroyed. As examples of such phenomena, one can describe the Shish, Tuirok, Konradi, Iult, Bakening volcanoes and the Zavaritsky volcano.
Mount Velkhatnaya (Velvet Hill)
The mountain received this name for a reason: the surface of its slopes from afar can be mistaken for velvet. In fact, the slopes consist of volcanic emissions, tuff and dust. 850 meters is the height of Velvet Mountain. Fans of active recreation constantly visit [b]Velvet Hill. During the warm season, both locals and travelers climb the mountain. In winter, many ski lovers appear on its slopes.
Goryachaya Mountain (Goryachaya Hill)
Sopka Goryachaya (Mount Goryachaya) is located between the Paratunka and Karamshina rivers. A magnificent mountain peak with a height of 721.4 m, the Mountain is of igneous origin, its relative height is 621 m.
Mount Zaykin Cape (Mount Chirelchik)
Mount Zaikin Mys is located near the village of Termalny. Its height is 948 m above sea level. The gravel road leading to the Mutnovsky Pass stretches along the eastern slope of the mountain, which is covered with a stone-birch forest with rowan undergrowth.
Mount Sharp
Mount Ostraya, located near the village of Sosnovka, reaches a height of 1233 m (absolute mark). Tourists come here all year round. In the summer to climb to the top and admire the surroundings, in the winter to go skiing and snowboarding.
Mount Woodpile
Mount Polennitsa is located on the territory of the Klyuchevsky Natural Park, included in the UNESCO World Natural and Cultural Heritage List. In 2001, it was officially included in the category “Volcanoes of Kamchatka”.
Koryak Highlands
The Koryak Highlands are located in the Kamchatka and Magadan regions of the Russian Federation. It is located on the shores of the Bering Sea, between the Kamchatka Peninsula and the Gulf of Anadyr. The length of the highland is 880 km, and its width is 270 km. The average height of the ridge is 600-1800 meters, and the highest point is Mount Ledyanaya, whose height is 2562 m.
