Emajõgi Riverland

Address: Riia 15 Tartu

Tel: +372 504 5730

Riverland

Bird´s-eye View of Emajõgi River

Ferry trips: Port of Tartu

...the Suur-Emajõgi (Big Emajõgi) or just the Emajõgi, 100 km long, is the only outflow of Lake Võrtsjärv and has been an important communication and trade route between Võrtsjärv and Peipsi lakes over centuries.

...the Emajõgi has 12 tributaries, about 35 drains and brooks flow into it. The tributaries of the left bank are: the Pedja, Laeva, Amme and Koosa rivers; the right bank tributaries are the Kavilda, Elva, Ilmatsalu, Porijõgi, Mudajõgi, Luutsna, Ahja and Agali rivers. The Koosa and Agali rivers are delta rivers of the Emajõgi.

...the length of the Emajogi from Lake Vortsjärv to Lake Peipsi was 117 km as recorded in 1927, whereas from Kivisilla bridge (Stone Bridge) to Lake Peipsi 45.7 km and to Lake Vortsjärv 71.3 km. After being straightened, the Emajogi is as long as 100 kilometres.

...the width of the riverbed is 40 - 100 metres; the depth of the river is 2 - 4 m, at places up to 10 m; the flow rate is 3.7 km/h.

 

...protected areas make up ca 12 % of the area of the county. 40 % of Laeva rural municipality and 33 % of Vonnu rural municipality are under protection. The percentage of protected areas is high in Tartu county owing to two large swamp conservation areas: Alam-Pedja nature reserve at the beginning of the Emajõgi and Emajõe-Suursoo landscape reserve at the delta of the river. Both Alam-Pedja nature reserve and Emajõe-Suursoo landscape reserve are Ramsar areas.

...the western and the north-western parts of Tartu county lie in the basin of Lake Võrtsjärv. This marshland is the fourth largest (289.9 km2) in Estonia. In 1994 one of the largest Estonian protected areas - Alam-Pedja nature reserve - was formed to protect this peculiar landscape. A distinctive feature of the protected area is an exceptionally spare population: there are only 20 permanent inhabitants in the territory of 260 square kilometres.

...some species, e.g. soft-leaved elm, low-stemmed birch, meadow sword lily, Siberian fleur-de-lis and a great number of different orchidaceae, which are rare both in Estonia and all over the Europe, grow there. .

...thanks to varied landscapes Alam-Pedja nature reserve is rich in bird species - 193 species have been registered. Rare and therefore protected species include the corn-crake, great snipe, spotted crake, spotted eagle, golden eagle, willow grouse, merlin, capercaillie, crane, montagu's harrier, white-backed woodpecker, green woodpecker, stockdove and kingfisher.

...because the earth is rising in North Estonia, Lake Peipsi has shifted southwards and flooded southern coastal areas. The swamps located at the mouth of the Emajõgi have merged into one marshland and Emajõe-Suursoo landscape reserve was formed to protect it. The Emajõe-Suursoo is the fifth largest Estonian swamp by area and also the largest Estonian delta marshland.

...the Emajõgi is the only river in Tartu county that is navigable in its total length.