River · Russia
Aldan
The Aldan is a long river in Yakutia, in eastern Siberia, Russia. It sweeps across the land in a huge curve and is one of the largest tributaries of the Lena.
Picture credit: James St. John (CC BY 2.0) · Svetlana Ivanova (CC BY 3.0) · James St. John (CC BY 2.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Aldan?
The river starts here: Stanovoy Mountains, near Neryungri, Yakutia.
It ends in the Lena near Batamay, north of Yakutsk.
Countries on the river: Russia.
The story behind it
The Aldan begins in the Stanovoy Mountains in the south of Yakutia. It crosses the Aldan Highlands and later runs along the foot of the Verkhoyansk Range. Finally it meets the Lena near Batamay, about 150 km north of Yakutsk. From mid-October to mid-May the river is frozen, so it lies under ice for about seven months of the year. In summer, ships can sail on about 1 600 km of it. In 1639 the explorer Ivan Moskvitin and a group of 31 men travelled up the Aldan and its tributary, the Maya, on their way east. They became the first Russians to reach the Pacific Ocean. In 1923 rich gold was discovered in the Aldan area, and a gold-mining town grew up there. Some people think the name Aldan comes from an old word for gold, others think it means «fish». Today, a railway bridge 350 metres long crosses the river at Tommot.
Questions children ask
How long is the Aldan?
The Aldan is about 2 273 km long. Ships can sail on about 1 600 km of it.
Which river does the Aldan flow into?
Which explorer travelled on the Aldan?
In 1639 Ivan Moskvitin led a group of 31 men up the Aldan and the Maya. On this journey they became the first Russians to reach the Pacific Ocean.
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page was checked against public reference sources before publication. Where sources genuinely disagree, the text says so.
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