Seliger

a lake in Kalinin and Novgorod oblasts, RSFSR. Lake Seliger is located at an elevation of 205 m in the northwestern Valdai Hills. It has an area of 212 sq km and an average depth of 5.8 m. From north to south the lake is 100 km long. Of glacial origin, Lake Seliger has a complex lobate configuration. It consists of several separate reaches joined by short narrow channels; the reaches include the Ostashkov, Nizhnepozhitskii, Sosnitsa, and Selizharovo. There are approximately 160 islands in the north. The lake freezes in November or December, and the ice breaks up in the second half of April or in early May. A total of 110 tributaries flow into the lake, the main ones being the Cheremukha, Krapivenga, Sorocha, and Momenga. The Selizharovka River, a tributary of the Volga, flows out of Lake Seliger. There is fishing on the lake (whitefish, cisco, European bream, pike perch, pike). The city of Ostashkov is located on the lake’s southern shore. The Lake Seliger region is a popular resort and tourist area.