Iriklinskoye Reservoir

Iriklinskoye Reservoir is the largest body of water in the Southern Urals and the main source of fresh water in Orenburg Oblast. It lies in the Gaysky District on the Ural River. The reservoir takes its name from the Irikla, a tributary of the Ural. Its surface area exceeds 260 km² (26,000 ha), with a usable volume of 2,760 million m³, a length of 73 km from north to south, and a shoreline of 415 km (up to 581 km during high water). The average depth is 12.5 m, reaching 36–40 m at its deepest in the southern part. The dam's coordinates are 51.076° N, 59.731° E.

Construction History

Construction of the dam in the Irikla gorge on the Ural River began in 1949. Its purposes were to create a reserve of fresh water, irrigate farmland and generate electricity. The dam was completed by 1957, and filling of the reservoir began in April 1958. It took another 8 years for the water level to reach its design mark of 245 metres above sea level.

As the reservoir filled, floodplain meadows, forests, rocky slopes and several settlements were submerged. Among them was the village of Tanalyk, founded in 1743 (the same year as Orenburg) and once home to a military garrison; the bay now in its place is called Tanalyksky Bay. The settlements of Malyatino, Nikolsky, Sevastopolsky, Gorny Erik and others were also flooded.

Iriklinskaya Hydroelectric and Thermal Power Stations

The hydraulic engineering complex includes an earth-fill dam and a concrete spillway. A 30 MW hydroelectric power station operates at the dam, supplying electricity to nearby settlements, the Gaysky Mining and Processing Plant, and the Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works. In 1963, construction began nearby on the Iriklinskaya Thermal Power Station, the largest thermal power plant in the region; its first stage was launched in 1975. The workers' settlement of Energetik grew up around the construction site.

Fishing

About 40 fish species live in the reservoir. The main commercial species are bream, pike-perch, pike, carp, roach, perch, burbot, chub, sculpin and sterlet. In 1958 grass carp, brook trout and other species were artificially introduced. The record annual catch was 991 tonnes, set in 1988.

Different parts of the reservoir favour different fish: carp bite well on the shallows near the village of Urtazym in the north, crucian carp in the mouth of the Zhusa River and in the Khrushchyovsky backwater, and pike and roach throughout the reservoir. Ice fishing continues from late November to late March.

Islands and Bays

The reservoir is dotted with islands, bays, capes and spits. The best-known islands are Lyubvi (Love), Visyachy Kamen (Hanging Stone) and Koshar. The largest bay, Suunduksky, stretches for 43 km. The southern part has cosy coves and backwaters lined with bird cherry thickets and birch groves, and Beryozovy Ravine holds a genuinely dense forest. Several thousand poplar, elm, larch and birch saplings are planted along the shores every year.

Recreation and Resorts

Several tourist resorts operate on the reservoir. Among the well-known ones is "Gorny Erik" (reachable by ferry from Energetik, with heated cabin accommodation). The reservoir is suitable for scuba diving, boating and jet-skiing, windsurfing, water-skiing, and rides on rowing boats and catamarans. Most visitors come from Orenburg and Chelyabinsk oblasts and from Bashkortostan.

Getting There

The nearest major city is Orsk (90 km to Energetik, with an airport). From Gay it is about 30 km, from Magnitogorsk 200 km, and from Orenburg 315 km (about 4 hours by car). Good paved roads reach only the southern part of the reservoir; elsewhere the roads are unpaved and difficult to drive after rain.