Psou
title: "Psou" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["rivers-of-krasnodar-krai", "rivers-of-georgia-(country)", "rivers-of-abkhazia", "international-rivers-of-europe", "international-rivers-of-asia", "georgia-(country)–russia-border", "smuggling-routes", "drainage-basins-of-the-black-sea"] topic_path: "geography/russia" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psou" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::data[format=table title="Infobox river"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Psou |
| image | Река Псоу - panoramio.jpg |
| pushpin_map | Georgia Abkhazia#Georgia |
| source1_location | Greater Caucasus |
| mouth_location | Black Sea |
| mouth_coordinates | |
| subdivision_type1 | Country |
| subdivision_name1 | Georgia (Abkhazia), Russia |
| length | 53 km |
| basin_size | 421 km2 |
| :: |
| name = Psou | image = Река Псоу - panoramio.jpg | image_caption = | pushpin_map = Georgia Abkhazia#Georgia | source1_location = Greater Caucasus | mouth_location = Black Sea | mouth_coordinates = | subdivision_type1 = Country | subdivision_name1 = Georgia (Abkhazia), Russia | length = 53 km | source1_elevation = | mouth_elevation = | discharge1_avg = | basin_size = 421 km2
The Psou (; ; ფსოუ; ; ) is a river in the West Caucasus, bordering the Gagra Range to the east. It flows along the southern slopes of the Greater Caucasus Mountain Range and forms a part of the border between Georgia (Abkhazia) and Russia. Its source is in the Aigra Mountain, and it flows into the Black Sea. The Psou is 53 km long, and the drainage basin is approximately 421 km2. Between the mouth of the river and the mouth of the Mzymta is a "sandy depositional foreland", which is approximately 8 km in length and 2 km wide.
The principal tributaries of the Psou are the Besh and the Pkhista. Between 1913 and 1955, a hydrological station was in operation at Leselidze, roughly 1.5 km upstream of the river's mouth. The Psou gained notoriety as a smuggling route out of the country, by-passing Russian controls on the border. As of 2008 it was still designated as a transboundary river which lacked an international cooperation agreement as part of the UNECE Water Convention.
References
References
- {{Abkhazia-note
- (2007). "Our Waters: Joining Hands Across Borders : First Assessment of Transboundary Rivers, Lakes and Groundwaters". United Nations. Economic Commission for Europe, United Nations Publications.
- Bird, Eric. (25 February 2010). "Encyclopedia of the World's Coastal Landforms". Springer Science & Business Media.
- (2006). "Invisible Threats: Financial and Information Technology Crimes and National Security". IOS Press.
- (11 January 2014). "Conflict, Crime, and the State in Postcommunist Eurasia". University of Pennsylvania Press.
- Lagutov, Viktor. (22 October 2008). "Rescue of Sturgeon Species in the Ural River Basin". Springer Science & Business Media.
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