Volgo Baltic. From the Rybinsk Reservoir to Lake Onega: Sailing the Volga-Baltic Waterway - River Pilgrim

16.06.2021

The construction of the new Volga-Baltic waterway was started in 1940, but in 1941, due to the outbreak of World War II, the construction site had to be mothballed. It was resumed after the completion of the shock post-war hydraulic construction - the Volga-Don. After the VDSK, a large amount of construction equipment was transferred to the Volga-Balt, the Volgobaltstroy trust was created, but in 1953, after the death of I.V. 1 and no. 2.

In 1955, the Government of the USSR again decided to continue construction, but the customer was no longer the Ministry of Internal Affairs, but the Ministry of the River Fleet, and a condition was put forward to reduce the construction estimate. Designer - Lengidroproekt, since 1956 Chief Engineer project G. A. Krylov. Khmelnitsky A. M. was the head of Volgobaltstroy, and Batuner P. D. was the chief engineer.

The project was revised - the number of locks was reduced (instead of 9 locks it became 7), the scheme for erecting a watershed canal was changed - the canal was accepted without fixing the banks, the so-called. "self-transforming" profile, hydromechanization is widely introduced, etc.

Since 1959, the Volga-Baltic waterway has been declared a priority construction project of the seven-year plan. In the last five years of construction, some hydrotechnical problems were solved in a new way.

According to the original project, it was supposed to create a powerful hydroelectric complex with a pumping station on the Volga-Baltic watershed to supply water for the needs of locking. Leningrad engineers proposed instead to lower the level of the canal in the watershed section and create a single watershed pool 270 km long with the inclusion of White Lake in it. It turned, thus, into a reservoir that feeds the entire area with gravity water. True, the volume of earthworks at the same time increased, but the construction of two locks and two dams was excluded, and the reduction in the number of locks not only reduced the cost of construction, but also increased the throughput of the waterway. The need to flood the territory with all the attendant difficulties was minimized: the resettlement of residents, the transfer of industrial facilities to new places, the loss of forests and land. Thanks to this decision, in the entire Volga-Balta zone with a length of 360 km, only 218 settlements and cut down forests on an area of 9 thousand hectares. It was also possible to avoid an increase in atmospheric humidity, harmful to the natural conditions of the North-West, from the evaporation of an additional water surface.

At the construction of the Volga-Balt, a kind of record was set for the use of hydromechanization, the cheapest method of excavation. All this taken together - a rational design and economical technology - has significantly reduced the cost of construction.

Scheme of the waterway according to the technical project of 1955

Scheme of the implemented project with a "single pool"

Volga-Baltic Canal

Profile of the Volga-Baltic Canal

Another important feature of the Volga-Balt is that here all the locks of the Baltic slope (with the exception of Pakhomovsky) have the same height - 13.5 m and are completely standardized in design, which made it possible to widely use the benefits of using standardized parts during their construction.

In June 1964, the Volga-Baltic waterway was put into operation. The motor ship "Krasnogvardeets" was the first of the passenger ships along the Volga-Balt. On October 27 of the same year, the government commission accepted the waterway into permanent operation. Somewhat later, he was named after V.I. Lenin. 7 locks, 3 hydroelectric power stations, 5 spillways, 25 earthen dams and dams, 74 km of artificial canals, 35 km of asphalt roads, 384 km of power lines and 10 substations, etc. were built on the canal.

With the construction of the Volga-Baltic Canal, the Volga-Baltic Waterway was closed. This route is a link in the unified deep-water transport system of the European part of Russia, which provided the connection of waterways leading to the Baltic, White, Caspian, Black and Azov seas.

The total length of the route between Lake Onega and the city of Cherepovets is 368 km. The path passes in places along the route of the former Mariinsky system, in places deviating somewhat from it. On the Volga-Baltic waterway there are 5 powerful waterworks with 7 single-chamber single-line locks. On the northern slope, 4 hydroelectric facilities - Vytegorsky, Belousovsky, Novinkovsky and Pakhomovsky - are located on the rise from Lake Onega to the watershed (80 m). The fifth hydroelectric complex (Cherepovets) is on the southern slope on Sheksna, 50 km above Cherepovets. On the northern slope, the route coincides with the channel of the Vytegra River and passes through reservoirs formed by hydroelectric facilities. The dividing pool stretches from the Pakhomovsky hydroelectric complex on Vytegra to the Cherepovets hydroelectric complex on Sheksna.

The shipping route here runs along a 40 km long watershed canal (from the Pakhomovsky hydroelectric complex to the village of Annensky Most), then along the Kovzha River, White Lake and Sheksna. The route of the southern slope runs along Sheksna, located in the backwater of the Rybinsk reservoir. surplus water resources watershed are utilized by HPPs as part of the Sheksna hydroelectric complex with a modern capacity of 84 MW. The fall of the canal on the Northern slope is 80 m (six locks) and on the Southern slope - 13 m - one step on the Sheksna River (since 1989, the second thread of the lock has been operating here - the old No. 7 and the new No. 8 with dimensions of 310 × 21.5 × 5 .5 m).

All locks are reinforced concrete, so-called. “compressed” profile, with chamber dimensions of 270 × 18 m. The depth at the thresholds of the locks and in transit was initially set at 3.65 m and subsequently increased to 4.0 m.

On the northern slope of the canal, two small HPPs with a capacity of 1 and 0.5 MW were built to utilize the local inflow into the lock pools.

The Volga-Baltic Canal is part of and closes the Volga-Baltic Waterway (formerly the Mariinsky Water System) - a system of canals, rivers and lakes in the North-West Russian Federation connecting the Volga with the Baltic Sea. The path passes through the Rybinsk reservoir to the city of Cherepovets, the Sheksna River, the Belozersky Canal, the Kovzha River, the Mariinsky Canal, the Vytegra River, the Onega Canal, Lake Onega, the Svir River, Lake Ladoga and the Neva River.

The length of the route is approximately 1100 km, the depth of the navigable fairway is at least 4 m, which ensures the passage of ships with a displacement of up to 5000 tons.

In general, today the Volgo-Balt is a complex complex of engineering facilities, including 4,900 kilometers of operated waterways, including 3,270 kilometers with guaranteed dimensions, 11 locks with a head of 11 to 18 meters, three hydroelectric power stations, 25 earthen dams and dams, 12 ferry crossings, 9 bridge crossings, 8 lighthouses in Lake Ladoga, more than 5,000 navigation signs.

Cargoes are transported along the Volga-Balt without transshipment. Vessels go directly on the lakes (instead of moving along bypass channels). Transportation is dominated by self-propelled cargo ships; rafts are being towed through. The speed of transportation has sharply increased (travel time from Cherepovets to St. Petersburg is 2.5-3 days versus 10-15 before reconstruction). The cargo turnover of the Volga-Baltic waterway has increased significantly in comparison with the old Mariinsky system.

The estimated capacity of the canal - 15.4 million tons was blocked in the late 1980s and now the question arises again about the construction of the second lines of locks No. 1 - 6 on the northern slope of the canal, as well as on the Svir River. Despite the narrow fairway and congestion of ships at the locks, the cargo flow along the Volga-Baltic route is constantly increasing.

Introduction

Volga-Baltic waterway

Significance of the Volga-Baltic Waterway

Conclusion

List of used literature

Since ancient times, rivers have been the most convenient and inexpensive means of communication on Russian soil. That is why everything big cities in Russia they were necessarily based on the banks of rivers. The names of all Russian capitals - Kiev, Vladimir, St. Petersburg, Moscow - are inextricably linked with the names of the rivers - the Dnieper, Klyazma, Neva, Moscow River.

The importance of river transport in Russia was so great that 205 years ago, in order to maintain its stable operation and planned development, Emperor Paul I established the "Department for the implementation and management of all matters related to water communications." It was the first centralized public service track facilities and hydraulic structures.

However, Russian inland waterways improved especially rapidly during the time of developed socialism: in the 30-70s of the last century. It was then that unique inter-basin connections were created (Volga-Baltic, White Sea-Baltic, Volga-Don canals, the Moscow Canal) and chains of reservoirs. Thanks to these hydrotechnical facilities, it was possible to combine everything in any way into a single shipping system. major rivers European part of Russia.

Not only Moscow, but also dozens of other Russian cities have gained the right to call themselves "ports of the five seas", since it became possible to deliver cheap and unhindered cargo and passengers along the rivers to the Baltic, White, Black, Azov, Caspian seas or between them. In the same years, navigation conditions were significantly improved on the rivers of Siberia and Far East. Russia rightfully had the status of a great river power, since no other country had such an extensive system of inland waterways. But this status has now been irrevocably lost by Russia.

River navigation in Russia is in decline. Over the past decade, thousands of kilometers of river routes have been withdrawn from the category of navigable in Russia. Almost completely lost the navigability of Klyazma. The same fate threatens to befall the Volga-Baltic Canal. The Volga-Baltic Canal is a system of high-pressure locks united into a canal. It is a single deep-water system that connects five seas. In terms of its length (361 km), the Volga-Baltic Canal exceeds the Panama Canal by four and a half times, and the Suez Canal by two. This facility is federally owned.

Recently, there has been a sharp deterioration in the patency of ships along the canal. The duration of a round trip from Yaroslavl to the seaport of St. Petersburg has increased from 12 to 18 days. The condition of the channel has deteriorated especially sharply in five recent years. If earlier the depth of the canal was guaranteed to be 4 m, now it barely reaches 3 m 60 cm. Therefore, ships have to be not fully loaded. The shallower the depth, the less the ability to fill the holds with cargo. Because of this, the speed of movement also slows down. Being careful, ships move along the canal more slowly than usual. Queues of ships accumulate near the locks. Each ship at stops loses at least a day. Every 10 cm of depth is 200 tons of cargo.

The volume of transported goods decreases, and the profit of ship owners also decreases. Lack of profit leads to the closure of the business. Now the condition of the canal can be called catastrophic: the banks are slipping in places, which does not allow to withstand the dimensions of the ship's passage. According to local authorities and experts, it takes about 300 million rubles a year to maintain the channel in working order, and the amounts allocated by the federal center are ten times less.

The lack of funding directed to support this facility threatens that the Vologda Oblast may be swept away from the face of Russia.

Volga-Baltic Waterway - (former Mariinsky water system) - in the Russian Federation. It connects the Volga with the Baltic Sea, and through the White Sea-Baltic Canal with the White Sea. It passes through the Rybinsk Reservoir. to Cherepovets, Sheksna River, Belozersky Canal, Kovzha, Mariinsky Canal, r. Vytegra, Onega Canal, r. Svir, Lake Ladoga and r. Neva. The Mariinsky water system was built in the beginning. 19th century; since 1964, after a radical reconstruction, the Volga-Baltic waterway. Length approx. 1100 km, depth not less than 4 m. Vessels up to 5000 tons.

Volga-Baltic waterway them. V. I. Lenin (former Mariinsky water system), an artificial waterway connecting the Volga with the Baltic Sea, and through the White Sea-Baltic Canal with the White Sea.

Russia's access to the Baltic Sea at the beginning of the 18th century and the growing role of St. Petersburg demanded convenient water communications with the interior regions of the country. 3 waterways were created - the Vyshnevolotsk water system (traffic was opened in 1709), Tikhvin (1811) and Mariinsky (1810). The Mariinsky water system began at Rybinsk, the route went along Sheksna, White Lake, Kovzha, the artificial Mariinsky (later Novomariinsky) Canal, laid through the watershed between the Volga basin and Lake Onega, then along Vytegra, Lake Onega, Svir, Lake Ladoga and Neva (total about 1100 km). The Mariinsky system proper was part of the route from the Volga to Lake Onega. The North Dvina Canal, which departs from Sheksna (opened in 1829), gave access through the Sukhona and the Northern Dvina to the White Sea. The difficulties of navigation of small flat-bottomed ships on the lakes subsequently forced the construction of bypass canals - Belozersky, Onega and Novoladozhsky. For its time, the Mariinsky system was an outstanding hydraulic structure and was of great economic importance, but by the beginning of the 20th century. it no longer satisfied the transport needs of the country, despite the work carried out at the end of the 19th century. reconstruction.

The creation of a new waterway between Lake Onega and the Volga began after the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45, unfolded in 1960; June 5, 1964 V.-B. v. item was opened. This route is a link in the unified deep-water transport system of the European part of the USSR, which provided the connection of waterways leading to the Baltic, White, Caspian, Black and Azov seas.

On the northern slope, the route coincides with the channel of the river. Vytegra and passes through reservoirs formed by hydroelectric facilities. The dividing pool stretches from the Pakhomovsky hydroelectric complex on Vytegra to the Cherepovets hydroelectric complex on Sheksna. The navigable route here passes through a watershed canal with a length of 40 km(from the Pakhomovsky hydroelectric complex to the village of Annensky Most), then along the river. Kovzha, White Lake and Sheksna. The route of the southern slope runs along Sheksna, located in the backwater of the Rybinsk reservoir.

V.-B. v. n. is available for vessels with a carrying capacity of about 5000 T, goods are transported without transshipment. Vessels go directly on the lakes (instead of moving along bypass channels). Transportation is dominated by self-propelled cargo ships; rafts are being towed through. The speed of transportation has sharply increased (Cherepovets - Leningrad 2.5-3 day versus 10-15 before reconstruction). The cargo turnover of V.-B. v. n. in comparison with the old Mariinsky system; the proportion of mixed rail-water transportation has increased. The most important cargoes: from the Kola Peninsula (via Kandalaksha) iron ore concentrate to the Cherepovets Metallurgical Combine; Khibiny apatite, apatite concentrate, Karelian granite and diabase to different parts of the country; timber and lumber from the Arkhangelsk and Vologda regions to the South, to the Baltic States, Leningrad and for export; ferrous metal from Cherepovets, Donetsk and Kuznetsk coal, Ural sulfur pyrite, Solikamsk potash salts - for the North-West, the Baltic States and for export; Baskunchak salt (especially for Murmansk); corn. Tankers from the Volga carry oil cargoes for the North-West, the Baltic States and for export. Through Leningrad to V.-B. v. n. import cargoes arrive for different regions of the country. In passenger traffic, there is a significant number of tourist ships (routes from Leningrad to Moscow, Astrakhan, Rostov-on-Don, Perm, etc.).

In 2004, it was forty years since through traffic along the Volga-Baltic Waterway (VBVP) began. Almost simultaneously with the start of operation, intensive reconstruction began to be carried out in order to increase its throughput. As a result of the implementation of several programs on the route, a depth of 4 meters was ensured, with a minimum width of 50-70 meters in some sections. Subject to the conditions of speed limits, divergences and overtaking, it became possible to pass vessels with a carrying capacity of up to 5 thousand tons. By the end of the 80s, 45 million tons of soil had been excavated on the route, but the work planned to allow the passage of "five-thousander" motor ships was never completed. finished. By 1990, the capacity of the Volga-Balt had exhausted itself. The volume of traffic in both directions amounted to 15.7 million tons. In this navigation, scientists from the Department of Transport Management of the Volga state academy water transport on the instructions of the Volga Shipping Company, they performed calculations and assessed the impact of the operation of pushed trains on the capacity of the Volga-Baltic waterway.

Navigation conditions on the Volga-Baltic waterway are extremely difficult. In general, there are 24 sections along 855 km of waterways where certain restrictions on the movement of ships are established. This means divergence at lower speeds, and divergence only on straight sections. There are sections where divergences and overtaking are prohibited. Their total length is 163 km, which is 19.1% of the entire length of the canal. The complexity of navigation is exacerbated by 9 shipping locks with small (compared to the Volga-Kama cascade) dimensions. The access channels of the locks have an insignificant width of the ship's passage, the mooring bollards are either absent or not equipped. But since they were not included in the standard scheme, each of their passage along the VBVP was carried out according to specially developed rules and accompanied by a pilot. The main argument of the channel's specialists, who objected to the inclusion of these trains in the standard scheme, was their length - 170.2 m.

The Volga-Baltic Canal is a large hydraulic structure, a link in the Unified deep-water transport system of the European part of Russia. The Volga-Baltic Canal connects the Rybinsk Reservoir with Lake Onega and is the main part of the Volga-Baltic Route. Through Lake Onega, the Svir River, Lake Ladoga and the Neva, you can get into the Baltic Sea, and through the White Sea-Baltic Canal - into the White Sea.

The length of the Volga-Balta is 368 km, the waterway passes through the Lower Sheksna and the Sheksna (Cherepovets) reservoir, White Lake and the Kovzha River, the watershed canal and the Vytegra River.

Map of the Volga-Baltic Canal (Volgo-Balta)

Volga-Baltic Canal - description

The Volga-Baltic Canal has two slopes: steep northern (Baltic) and gentle southern (Caspian).

Hydraulic structures were built on the northern slope, including 6 locks, through which ships rise to a watershed bluff to a height of more than 80 meters:

The Vytegorsky hydroelectric complex is located 14 km from Lake Onega and consists of a dam that raises the water level in Vytegra by 13.5 meters, a hydroelectric power station and lock No. 1.

In the city of Vytegra, an old gateway has been preserved - the only museum-fitted wooden gateway of the Mariinsky system. There is an obelisk next to it. white color- a monument in honor of the completion of the construction in 1886 of the Novo-Mariinsky Canal between the rivers Vytegra and Kovzha, transferred in the early 60s from the upper reaches of the Vytegra from the village of Aleksandrovskoe

2 km from Vytegorsky is the Belousovsky hydroelectric complex with lock No. 2, made similarly to the first hydroelectric complex
At a distance of 11 km from the second lock, the Novinkinsky hydroelectric complex was built, which includes locks No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5. The Novinkovskaya staircase is interesting both from an engineering and aesthetic point of view. In this place, for three kilometers, the ships, as it were, enter the stairs to a height of more than 40 meters. Perhaps this is the most remarkable place on the Volga-Baltic Canal: the distance between locks No. 3 and No. 4 is small, and from the upstream of the fourth lock, the entire picturesque valley and hilly forest expanses are visible below
When approaching the Pakhomovsky hydroelectric complex, you can see the village of Devyatiny and the five-domed Assumption Church. Pakhomovsky hydroelectric complex with lock No. 6 occupies special place in the Volga-Balta system. This is the most high-pressure and deep lock, its height is about 20 meters. This lock ends the northern slope and begins the watershed leading to the southern slope of the Volga-Baltic Canal.

The dimensions of the Volga-Balt locks are 270 by 18 meters, their architecture is of the same type, which made it possible to use the same details during construction.

Further, from lock No. 6 to the Cherepovets hydroelectric complex, there is a single watershed bluff with a length of about 270 km, including a watershed canal 39 km long, the Kovzha River - 70 km, White Lake - 45 km and the Sheksna River (from its source in the White Sea to the hydroelectric complex) - 121 km.

It should be noted that the section of the canal passing along the Kovzha River is the most beautiful in the Volga-Balta. The local nature is practically untouched by man - settlements are very rare, and even those that exist are mainly engaged in logging. The channel width is very small.

The construction of the Volga-Baltic Canal was carried out at an accelerated pace, so before the flooding of the territory they did not even have time to cut down the trees. And since the tree is most quickly destroyed at the border of water and air, and under water, on the contrary, it is extremely resistant to decay, you can still see entire forests of stumps in some sections of the canal - a terrifying landscape similar to the moon. Even where, it would seem, there is nothing in the water, a high wave from the ship exposes tree trunks that are under water and several centimeters missing from the edge.

On the southern slope of the Volga-Balt, on the Sheksna River, there is the Cherepovets hydroelectric complex with parallel locks No. 7 and No. 8, lowering ships by 13 meters. Gateway No. 7 is old, and since 1989 a second line has been operating here - lock No. 8 with dimensions of 310 by 21.5 meters.

From the history

V early XVIII century after the victory of Russia in the Northern War and access to the Baltic Sea, the role of St. Petersburg is growing. In this regard, new convenient ways were needed to connect the capital with other territories. For this, three waterways were built:

The very first, in 1709, the Vyshnevolotsk water system was built, connecting the Tvertsa River, a tributary of the Volga, with the Baltic Sea
The Tikhvin water system ran from Rybinsk through the Tikhvin connecting canal to Lake Ladoga and the Neva, built in 1811
The Mariinsky water system ran from Rybinsk along Sheksna and White Lake, Kovzha and the artificial Mariinsky Canal, then along Vytegra, Lake Onega, Svir, Lake Ladoga and the Neva. This waterway was of great economic importance and served for more than 150 years.

At the same time, at the beginning of the 20th century, the Mariinsky system no longer satisfied the transport needs of Russia and it was decided to create a new channel. Its construction began in 1940. The construction was carried out by prisoners under the leadership of the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs. For workers building hydraulic structures, the Vytegorsk labor camp was organized.

Due to the outbreak of World War II, construction was frozen and resumed only in 1959. The object was declared a top-priority construction site for the seven-year plan, and five years later the water artery was built.

On June 28, 1964, the first passenger ship Krasnogvardeets departed from the Ozernaya pier in Leningrad on a flight to Yaroslavl. In October, the building was put into operation, and soon it was named after V.I. Lenin.

Volga-Baltic Canal - structures

The peculiarity of the Volga-Balt is that all the locks of the Baltic slope, except for Pakhomovsky, have the same height - 13.5 meters, which made it possible to use standard structures during construction. In total, there are 7 locks on the channel, of which one (Pakhomovskiy) is a two-line
5 waterworks - Vytegorsky, Belousovsky and Novinkinsky, Pakhomovsky and Cherepovets
3 hydroelectric power plants - Vytegorskaya, Belousovskaya and Sheksninskaya
25 earth dams and dikes
4 artificial reservoirs - Vytegorskoye and Belousovskoye, Novinkinskoye and Sheksninskoye
5 bridges on locks
2 ferry crossings
11 marinas
4 operational villages.

sights

For tourists traveling along the Volga-Balt, several green parking lots are organized, one of them is in the ancient village of Irma. This area is associated with the name of the Russian scientist-historian Nikolai Dmitrievich Chechulin. Here he is buried, and a memorial obelisk is erected on the site of the burned-out Chechulin house.

Tourist boats also call at the village of Goritsylocated on the left bank of the Sheksna. During the mooring of the ship, you can make the following excursions:

The main one is in the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery. Like other monasteries of that era, the monastery served as a military fortress, a pillar of royal power and a refuge in case of war or internal unrest.
The second excursion is to the Ferapontov Monastery, world famous thanks to the frescoes of Dionysius, created in 1502
And finally, tourists can independently explore the Goritsky Monasterylocated a stone's throw from the pier. This monastery was a place of imprisonment of noble women, for example, in 1608, the daughter of Tsar Boris, Ksenia Godunova, was exiled here.

During the construction of the canal, many settlements fell into the flood zone. Residents moved to new places, and stone temples remained in the villages. One of them, the half-flooded Krokhinsky Church of the Nativity of Christ, stands at the source of the Sheksna River. The two-story church with a bell tower was built in 1788 in the Baroque style on the shores of the White Lake by decree of Empress Catherine II. Now, the dilapidated temple serves as a "natural landmark" for ships sailing along the White Lake.

In the area of the village of Topornya, the North Dvina system (North Dvina waterway) begins, connecting Sheksna and the Northern Dvina River. It was built in 1829 and has not changed dramatically since then. Currently, it is not important for shipping. Only small ships can pass through it, so cruises on the North Dvina system are made less and less. From the board of the ship following the Volga-Balt, you can see the first lock of this outdated water system. However, in our time, this series of preserved wooden locks is of interest as a monument of science and technology of the past.

The Volga-Baltic Canal was created by several generations of designers and builders who made the long-held dream of a waterway connecting the ports of five seas come true. The Volga-Balt was and remains the busiest waterway, allowing transportation not only between the regions of Russia, but also between the seaports of the northern and southern seas Europe.

Located in the Vologda region (Russia), which is a key link connecting with the water bodies of the North-West (and, and,), which gives access to the Baltic, White, Caspian, Black and Azov Seas.

The construction of the Volga-Baltic Canal was carried out from 1940 to 1964 on the former route, built in the 19th-20th centuries.

The length of the Volga-Baltic Canal is 367 km. Of these, 66 km fall on (the Sheksna River), 121 km - on the (Sheksna River), 45 km - on the White Lake, 70 km - on the Kovzha River, 25 km - (between Kovzha and Vytegra) and 40 km - on the Vytegra River.

The Volgo-Balt includes 3 hydroelectric power plants, 5 spillways, 25 earthen dams and dams, 4 artificial reservoirs, 5 lock bridges, 2 ferry crossings, 11 piers, 4 operational villages.

On the route of the Volga-Baltic Canal of the canal there are 5 hydroelectric facilities:

On the Vytegra River:

Vytegorsky hydroelectric complex, including lock No. 1 of the VBC
Belousovsky hydroelectric complex, which includes gateway No. 2 of the VBC
Novinkovsky hydroelectric complex, including lock No. 3, lock No. 4 and lock No. 5 of the VBC
Pakhomovsky hydroelectric complex, including lock No. 6 VBC

On the Sheksna River:

Sheksninsky hydroelectric complex, including lock No. 7 and lock No. 8 of the VBC

The decision to build the Volga-Baltic waterway (canal) was made on September 24, 1940. In the same year, the construction of lock No. 1 began in the city of Vytegra, but in 1941 the work was interrupted by the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War. They returned to the construction of the canal in 1947, but the commissioning of the Volga-Don Canal became a priority, so the construction of the Volga-Balt was postponed for almost ten years.

After the construction was completed (1948-1952), the equipment was relocated to the construction of the Volga-Baltic Canal. In 1956, a revised draft of a new waterway was prepared, developed by the engineers of the Leningrad branch of the Hydroproject, headed by G. A. Krylov.

New hydroelectric facilities were built in parallel with the hydroelectric facilities of the Mariinsky water system, therefore, during the entire period of construction of the Volga-Balt, the Mariinsky system supplied the construction site with machinery, equipment, and materials. The construction of the Volga-Balt, with all the interruptions, cost the state 218 million rubles. During construction, 218 settlements were resettled.

The time for the main construction of the new track was 60 months. Through traffic along the Volga-Baltic Canal was opened on June 4, 1964. The first passenger ship to pass through the canal was the motor ship from, which opened the Leningrad-Yaroslavl passenger line.

To increase the duration of navigation in 1978-1980, air blowers were installed at locks No. 1-No. 6 (Vytegra River), which allowed the locks to operate in ice conditions. The duration of navigation has increased to 270 days.

Due to the growth of cargo turnover through the canal in 1980, the construction of the second line of the shipping lock (lock No. 8) at the Sheksna hydroelectric complex (Sheksna River) began, which dragged on for almost 15 years: construction work was started back in 1980, completed in 1990, and the first locking took place in 1994.

In the late 2000s and early 2010s, all hydropower facilities on the Vytegra River were reconstructed and modern mooring walls were built.

The Volga-Baltic Canal is included in the boundaries of economic and administrative activities. Navigable facilities on the Vytegra River are under the jurisdiction of the Vytegorsky District of Hydraulic Structures and Navigation, and on the Sheksna River - to the Sheksninsky District of Hydraulic Structures and Navigation.

Navigation on the Volga-Baltic Canal begins on April 30 with the start of navigation at locks No. 1-No. 8, and ends on November 15. In case of weather conditions (late spring and early winter), the sailing pass can be postponed 1-1.5 weeks later, or completed the same amount ahead of schedule.

The Vytegra, Kovzha and Sheksna rivers, as well as Lake Beloe, which are part of the Volga-Baltic Canal, belong to the water basins of the “P” category.

Shipping locks located on the Volga-Baltic Canal:

Reservoirs located on the Volga-Baltic Canal:

- (river Vytegra)
- (river Vytegra)

And the Neva River.

Volgo-Balt runs through Karelia, as well as Leningrad and Vologda region, capturing many sights and scenic spots, which can make crossing the canal a very exciting and memorable journey.

The length of the route is approximately 1100 km, the depth of the navigable fairway is at least 4 meters. The Volga-Baltic waterway is accessible both for ships with a carrying capacity of about 5,000 tons and for small boats.

In 1810-1963, the Volgobalt was called the Mariinsky water system, but after a radical reconstruction in 1964, it received its modern name. The Mariinsky system was part of the route from the Volga to Lake Onega. With the completion of the construction of the Volga-Baltic waterway, most of the Mariinsky water system became part of it. The Volga-Baltic Canal began to be considered a section of the waterway 367 km long, from the confluence of the river. Vytegra to Lake Onega to the village of Torovo beyond Cherepovets on the Rybinsk reservoir. The path passes in places along the route of the former Mariinsky system, in places deviating somewhat from it.

At present, the Volgo-Balt is a complex complex of engineering facilities, including 11 locks, 5 hydroelectric power stations, 25 earthen dams and dams, 12 ferry crossings, 9 bridge crossings, 8 lighthouses in Lake Ladoga, more than 5,000 navigation signs, 273 units service fleet. The track is operated by the Federal Budgetary Institution “Administration of the Volga-Baltic Inland Waterways Basin”, a state administration body within the Ministry of Transport.

List of 11 Volgo-Balt locks

Passage of six locks on Vytegra

We reached the first lock in the middle of the day. I contacted the dispatcher, and heard that I had to wait. In the narrow channel, I was at first confused, since at first glance there was absolutely nowhere to stumble, so we went to the left and anchored near one of the local walls. Later, I realized that it was possible to go to the right, into the channel leading to the city. As it turned out, in addition to large steamers, there were also small boats. But at the very least, we had already entrenched here - it only remained to wait until they called us.

And then, finally, I saw the lock gates swing open, after which a large steamer crawled out. The dispatcher warned me and another boat, which was somewhere nearby, that we needed to let a passing pusher with a barge pass and go right after him. About ten minutes later this tugboat appeared, and I immediately rushed after it.

The dispatcher called my eye and board. Natasha on the bow prepared herself with a hook, and I carefully headed to the indicated place. When there were about ten meters to the eye, I turned on the neutral on the engine, and a little later - in reverse, and put on the gas to slow down. Natashka pulled out her hook, clung to the eye, but the boat did not have time to stop, and the hook was already hooked, because of which the stick broke with a crack, and we, like the first time, hit the float against the wall. Fortunately, now everything that could be hung with fenders, and the blow fell on the fender. The fender was torn off by the impact, but the hull remained undamaged.

I was very nervous: after all, it would be very difficult for Natasha to climb onto the float, and it was completely unclear how to quickly moor to the eye. I gave more gas - the boat went back. Then I turned on the forward gear, trying to get to the eye. Natashka tried to grab hold of him with a broken stick, but all this did not give any result. The boat went forward again, and again I backed off, then forward again - and again slipped through. Meanwhile, Natashka was finally able to climb onto the float, and with another attempt she grabbed the eye. In the walkie-talkie, I heard the voice of the dispatcher, who even offered to go to another eye, if this does not work out for us, but I replied that almost everything was ready. The rope was successfully threaded and tied to ducks.

Another boat entered the chamber - some kind of gaff historical yacht. Behind her, the gate began to close. Reports went out from all the locking navigators. The dispatcher replied that they say, watch the mooring lines, the chamber is filling up, and then he began to ask everyone for the data of ships, navigators and routes. Our turn has come. P92-38, Russia, Bogorodsky Peter - I answered his questions. Priozersk-Arkhangelsk!

After the lock was completed, I warned the dispatcher that I would not go to the next lock today, but would stand somewhere nearby. We were given the go-ahead to leave, and we went to the Vytegorsk reservoir.

The next day we had to go through a whole cascade of locks, going one after another. Of course, we were worried, but not at all like on the Svir, we had some experience of locking.

We passed several villages, admired two picturesque dilapidated churches, and finally saw a gateway at the end of the reservoir. I immediately contacted the dispatcher, but I heard that for the time being we urgently need to leave the operational raid, anchor somewhere outside it and not shine. He, they say, will call when it is possible to send us off.

We had to wait here for four hours. We ate and drank tea, I constantly looked around, waiting for passing ships, but they all went in pairs. The fact is that either one motor ship and as many small boats as you like, or two motor ships and nothing more, are placed in the lock chamber, so we have not been able to wedge in so far. But, finally, the moment has come: I heard how a certain "Volgodon-half-a-half-sixty-eight" called the dispatcher and received an invitation to airlock.

In addition to this Volgodon, no one else appeared on the air. We began to prepare for lifting the anchor and starting. So the ship appeared from behind the turn - Natasha went on her bow to the anchor, and I took up the radio station.

The passage of all the Vytegorsk locks took place without any incidents. We were let into the cells after our "half-sixty-eight", we moored to the eye, climbed, then let us out, and we rushed to at full speed following the ship. Since the repelling hook was lost by us in the first lock, Natashka went out on the float ahead of time and caught the eye with her hands - it turned out to be much easier. To make it easier for her to move around the boat, I tied our kayak under the left side, and Natasha simply stepped into it from the cockpit, and then stepped onto the float. By the fourth lock, we had already relaxed so much that, during the rise of the water in the chamber, we drank tea at ease and talked abstractly.

It was already getting dark when we found ourselves in front of the sixth sluice, behind which began a long narrow canal without any hydraulic structures. We will no longer need to lock behind it all the way to the North Dvina Canal. We went into the cell, moored, and the gate closed behind us. It became completely dark, and only the searchlights of the airlock illuminated its cold concrete maw. The water began to rise, and when we were at the very top, we could see the rays of the Sun setting over the horizon. Another day was coming to an end.

The next day we moved on. The first significant structure on the way was the Volkov Bridge - a floating drawbridge in the area of the village of the same name. I called her for a long time on the third channel, but she did not answer. I had to spin nearby in anticipation of someone bigger, who certainly knows how to get through here. I even thought that the little ones are not allowed in here alone, just like at the locks. But ten minutes later, some tugboat appeared behind, which called the bridge on the fifth channel, and not at all on the third, as I did, reported something there and said that it would not go across the bridge, but would stand next to it. That's how it is! I also turned to the dispatcher on the fifth, she replied that she would let us through now - let's, they say, come up. How is it that everything is closed there and the red traffic light is on! - I answered, and she, in turn, urged me not to be shy and go forward: "now the crossing will open, and you will see a tunnel, do not be afraid."

And in fact - the colossus of the bridge slowly crawled to the side, opening like a huge door. A passage appeared, into which I rushed, while no one changed their minds. The bridge soon left behind us, I thanked the dispatcher, to which she wished me good luck, and we moved on. Then we also passed the Annensky bridge.

Gateway turned out to be a simple and fast enough business. With some skill, all the locks on Vytegra (from the first to the sixth) can be passed in a day, following some passing heavy truck.

The locks on the canal are serviced regularly, there were no problems with the eyelets and other equipment. Everything worked like clockwork. The dispatchers were exceptionally friendly and attentive. In a word, the trip along the canal left only the most favorable impressions.