River · Slovakia
Váh
Váh is the longest river in Slovakia, in the middle of Europe. It gathers its water in the Tatra Mountains and flows into the Danube at the town of Komárno.
Picture credit: Szombat78 (CC0) · stanislav.pavlovic1@… (CC BY 3.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is the Váh?
The river starts here: Tatra Mountains in northern Slovakia.
It ends in the the Danube at Komárno.
Countries on the river: Slovakia.
The story behind it
Váh begins where two mountain streams, the White Váh and the Black Váh, meet below the high peaks of the Tatras. At first it is cold and fast, rushing between forests, rocks and narrow valleys. Old castles look down from the cliffs above the water, and the ruins of Strecno are famous for their view. Hundreds of years ago, brave raftsmen steered long wooden rafts down the river to carry timber to the lowlands. Today a chain of dams and reservoirs slows the water, makes electricity and helps to hold back floods, because heavy rain and melting snow can make the river rise quickly. Farther south the valley opens out into flat farmland, and the river passes towns such as Zilina, Trencin and Piestany before joining the Danube.
Questions children ask
How long is the Váh?
The Váh is about 403 kilometres long. It is the longest river that runs entirely inside Slovakia.
Which country does the Váh flow through?
The river flows only through Slovakia, from the northern mountains to the southern plain. On the way it passes towns such as Zilina and Piestany.
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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