Olyutorsky Gulf
Encyclopedia
The Olyutorsky Bay is a gulf or bay
of the Bering Sea
in the northern part of Kamchatka Krai, Russia
.
It is bounded on the west by the Govena Peninsula which separates it from Korfa Bay
and on the east by the Olyutorsky Peninsula. It extends roughly 83 km inland and is 228 km at its widest. The deepest spot is about 1,000 meters. The western shore is dominated by the Pylginsky Ridge, which has a maximum elevation of 1,357 meters. The bay is normally covered by fast ice
from December to May. It has a large tidal range
of up to 1.9 meters.
The Olyutorsky District is one of the four districts of the Koryak Okrug. The Alyutors
, a branch of the Koryaks
lived in the area or somewhat west. There were also Yukagirs, some of whom had been brought south by the Russians. The major rivers are the Pakhacha and the Apuka. Their headwaters are close to the north-flowing Mayn River, and Velikaya River (Chukotka)
, branches of the Anadyr River
. Lantzeff speaks of an Oliutora River, which does not appear on modern maps and which he distinguishes from the Pakhacha. In 1714 the Russians built the ostrog
of Oliutorsk to control the coast and land route from Kamchatka to Anadyrsk
, a function it shared with Aklansk. It was besieged by the Yukagirs and Koryaks. It lost its importance after the sea route from Okhotsk
was opened.
Bay
A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...
of the Bering Sea
Bering Sea
The Bering Sea is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean. It comprises a deep water basin, which then rises through a narrow slope into the shallower water above the continental shelves....
in the northern part of Kamchatka Krai, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
.
It is bounded on the west by the Govena Peninsula which separates it from Korfa Bay
Korfa Bay
The Korfa Bay is a bay on the Kamchatka coast of the Bering Sea in Russia. It is approximately triangular being about 70 km wide at the mouth and extending inland about 75 km. On the west side, the Il'pinsky Peninsula separates it from Anapka Bay which forms the north end of Karaginsky...
and on the east by the Olyutorsky Peninsula. It extends roughly 83 km inland and is 228 km at its widest. The deepest spot is about 1,000 meters. The western shore is dominated by the Pylginsky Ridge, which has a maximum elevation of 1,357 meters. The bay is normally covered by fast ice
Fast ice
Fast ice is sea ice that has frozen along coasts along the shoals, or to the sea floor over shallow parts of the continental shelf, and extends out from land into sea. In Antarctica, fast ice may also extend between grounded icebergs...
from December to May. It has a large tidal range
Tidal range
The tidal range is the vertical difference between the high tide and the succeeding low tide. Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon and the Sun and the rotation of the Earth...
of up to 1.9 meters.
The Olyutorsky District is one of the four districts of the Koryak Okrug. The Alyutors
Alyutors
The Alyutors are an ethnic group who lived on the Kamchatka and Chukotka peninsulas of the Russian Far East. Today most of them live in the Koryak Autonomous Okrug. The name also occurs as Olyutorka, a settlement where many of the Alyutors used to live...
, a branch of the Koryaks
Koryaks
Koryaks are an indigenous people of Kamchatka Krai in the Russian Far East, who inhabit the coastlands of the Bering Sea to the south of the Anadyr basin and the country to the immediate north of the Kamchatka Peninsula, the southernmost limit of their range being Tigilsk. They are akin to the...
lived in the area or somewhat west. There were also Yukagirs, some of whom had been brought south by the Russians. The major rivers are the Pakhacha and the Apuka. Their headwaters are close to the north-flowing Mayn River, and Velikaya River (Chukotka)
Velikaya River (Chukotka)
The Velikaya River, also known as Bolshaya and Onemen , is a 556 km long river in Chukotka Autonomous Okrug in Russia. It flows North-Eastwards from the Koryak Range through the Anadyrskiy Liman into the Bering Sea at the Gulf of Anadyr. The area of its drainage basin is 31,000 km². Velikaya ...
, branches of the Anadyr River
Anadyr River
Anadyr is a river in the far northeast Siberia which flows into Anadyr Bay of the Bering Sea and drains much of the interior of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Its basin corresponds to the Anadyrsky District of Chukotka....
. Lantzeff speaks of an Oliutora River, which does not appear on modern maps and which he distinguishes from the Pakhacha. In 1714 the Russians built the ostrog
Ostrog
Ostrog may refer to:* Ostrog, Slovenia, a settlement in Šentjernej municipality in Slovenia* Ostrog monastery, a Serbian Orthodox Christian monastery in Montenegro* Ostroh, a historic town in Ukraine* Ostrog, a Russian term for a small fortress...
of Oliutorsk to control the coast and land route from Kamchatka to Anadyrsk
Anadyrsk
thumb|Anadyrsk was on the east-west part of the Anadyr River at the point where it swings northAnadyrsk was an important Russian ostrog in far northeastern Siberia from 1649 to 1764...
, a function it shared with Aklansk. It was besieged by the Yukagirs and Koryaks. It lost its importance after the sea route from Okhotsk
Okhotsk
Okhotsk is an urban locality and a seaport at the mouth of the Okhota River on the Sea of Okhotsk, in Okhotsky District, Khabarovsk Krai, Russia. Population: 4,470 ;...
was opened.