Tsipa River
Rapids on the Zipa
Position of Zipa ( Ципа ) in the catchment of Vitim
The Zipa (Russian Ципа ) is a 692 km long left tributary of the Vitim in eastern Siberia (Russia). In the upper reaches it is also known as Upper Zipa (Russian Верхняя Ципа / Verkhnaya Zipa ) in the middle reaches of the Lower Zipa (Russian Нижняя Ципа / Nischnjaja Zipa )
Course
The Zipa entfließt at an altitude of about 1950 meters a cirque lake at the western end of the good here 2500 m high Muja Southern Mountains ( Juschnomuisker Mountains ) near its transition to Ikat Mountains, both of which are counted for Stanowoihochland. The origin of the river is about 150 km east-southeast of Lake Baikal in a straight line north end and 100 km south of lying on the Baikal - Amur Mainline settlement Nowy Uojan.
The river soon turns to the east to northeast direction and is referred to its mouth in the 165 km ², located in 1059 m Lake Baunt as Upper Zipa ( Verkhnaya Zipa ). He leaves the lake at its northeast end as Lower Zipa ( Nischnjaja Zipa ) and maintains its north-eastern direction of flow in the wide, slightly inclined, swampy and lakes valley in the south of the Southern Muja Mountains, where it meanders strong. There already referred to simply as Zipa, the river turns sharply to the south and breaks in a narrow valley with a variety of rapids the Babanty Mountains said part of the Witimplateaus before he again turns to the northeast and finally in 550 m altitude, about 120 km southeast of Taksimo in the Lena Creek Vitim opens. In estuaries near the river is about 150 m wide, four feet deep and has a flow rate of 1.2 m / s
The main tributaries are Zipikan, Amalat and Aktragda from the right and from the Southern Mountains Muja coming, shorter rivers like Totscha, Uakit and Gorbylok from the left.
At its entire length, the Zipa flows through the territory of the Republic of Buryatia; the mouth is located on the border with the Trans-Baikal, which is marked there by Vitim.
Hydrology
The catchment area of 42,200 km ² comprises Zipa. The mean river discharge ( MQ ) is at the mouth of 270 m³ / s, on the middle reaches, 286 km upstream of the mouth, still 105 m³ / s at a minimum of 0.7 m³ / s in March and a maximum of 314 m³ / s July.
The Zipa freezes from October to May, in some years, until June to. In the upper reaches it freezes for three to five and a half months of the year through to the bottom.
Use and infrastructure
The Zipa is not navigable. It flows through very sparsely populated area; on its banks there are only a few small towns, including the " health resort Baunt " at the confluence of the Upper Zipa in the same lake. The small spa Baunt local importance with some hot springs is the end of a road. About this he can be reached from the approximately 700 km from the Republic capital Ulan -Ude and the administrative center of the neighboring region of Transbaikalia Chita on Romanowka at the top Vitim.
If the existed since the 1970s project of a large dam on the Vitim ( Mokskaja Dam ) are realized - the last year was recognized in 2010 as the start of construction - would fall within the reservoir area and about 100 km of Zipa - lower reaches.
The river is especially true in the current fast -rich portion by the Babanty Mountains as a worthwhile destination for canoeists.