Akhtuba
Akhtuba
the left branch of the Volga, which separates from it north of Volgograd. Length, 537 km. The old entrance to the Akhtuba has been blocked by a dam. A new 6.5-km canal from the Volga has been dug downstream. The average annual water flow is about 153 m3/sec. The river is navigable only at high water. The cities of Volzhskii (at the beginning of the branch), Leninsk, and Akhtubinsk are located on the Akhtuba. The Volga-Akhtuba floodlands—an important region of vegetable and melon cultivation—are located between the Volga and the Akhtuba.