Dragovištica (Драговищица) | |
---|---|
Country | Serbia, Bulgaria, Macedonia |
Basin features | |
Main source |
Bosilegrad, Serbia, from the Božička reka and the Ljubatska reka 787 m (2,582 ft) |
River mouth | Struma, north of Kyustendil, Bulgaria |
Physical characteristics | |
Length | 63 km (39 mi) |
The Dragovištica or Dragovishtitsa (Serbian Cyrillic: Драговиштица; Bulgarian: Драговищица) is a river in southeastern Serbia and western Bulgaria, a 63 km-long right tributary to the Struma River.
The river belongs to the Aegean Sea drainage basin and is not navigable.
The Dragovištica is formed by the confluence of the Božička reka (its longer headstream) and the Ljubatska reka at the small town of Bosilegrad in the southeastern part of Serbia, at an altitude of 787 m.
The Božička reka (Cyrillic: Божичка река) originates in the region of Krajište, between Lake Vlasina to the west and the Bulgarian border to the east, just a few kilometers from the source of another Serbian-Bulgarian river, the Jerma. However, while Jerma flows northward, the Mutnica (Cyrillic: Мутница), as the Božička reka is initially named, flows to the south, between the mountains of Vardenik (to the west) and Milevska planina (to the east). From the village of Božica on the river is known as the Božička reka ("river of Božica"). It receives the Lisina river from the right at the village of Donja Lisina and continues south to Bosilegrad, where it meets the Ljubatska reka. At Donja Lisina, the Božička reka is dammed, creating an artificial Lisina lake, used as an auxiliary reservoir for the Vrla hydro electrical power plants on the Vlasina River.
The Ljubatska reka (Cyrillic: Љубатска река) also originates in the Krajište region, but from its southwestern side, from the Besna Kobila mountain near the village of Musut. The river flows through the northern slopes of the Dukat, next to the villages of Gornja Ljubata and Donja Ljubata, before it reaches Bosilegrad. This is one of the many rivers in Serbia, which is very quiet and has a beautiful tourist landscape. By Dusan Djordjevic...