The Veselina (Bulgarian: Веселина) is a 70 km-long river in northern Bulgaria, a left tributary of the Stara reka, itself a right tributary of the river Yantra of the Danube basin.[1] It is the second largest tributary of the Stara reka, after the Golyama reka.[2]
Geography
A bridge on the Veselina
The Veselina takes its source at an altitude of 784 m southwest of the village of Drenta in the Elena–Tvarditsa division of the Balkan Mountains. It heads northeast until the village of Dobrevtsi and then flows north in a deep forested valley until reaching the Yovkovtsi Reservoir. After flowing out of the reservoir close to the Kapinovо Monastery the river cuts through the Elena Heights in a picturesque 4 km gorge. Downstream of the monastery it turns northeast and the valley widens, supporting farmlands. After the confluence with its tributary the Bebrovska reka, the Veselina turns north and flows into the Stara reka at an altitude of 64 m some 2.2 km north of the village of Dzhulyunitsa, close to the first class I-4 roadYablanitsa–Veliko Tarnovo–Varna.[1]
Its drainage basin covers a territory of 882 km2 or 35.9% of the Stara reka's total.[1] Its largest tributary is the 56.5 km long Zlatarishka reka.[3]
High water is in March–June and low water is in July–October. The average annual discharge at the Yovkovtsi Reservoir is 2.3 m3/s.[1]
Ecology
Part of the river course between the villages of Kapinovo and Mindya is included in the protected area River Veselina was established in 2012 with a territory of 0.99 km2.[4] There are mixed riparian forests of alder, willow, poplar and oak species with communities of moisture-loving vegetation along the river.[4]
On the river's left bank near the northern entrance of the gorge through the Elena Heights is situated the Kapinovo Monastery. Although most of the current buildings date from the 19th century, the monastery was established in 1272 in the reign of emperor Konstantin Tih during the Second Bulgarian Empire. Close to the cloister is the small Kapinovo waterfall.[5]
A 10.4 km stretch of the third class III-4004 follows the river's right bank in this lower course between Dzhulyunitsa and the intersection for the village of Rodina.[6]
Мичев (Michev), Николай (Nikolay); Михайлов (Mihaylov), Цветко (Tsvetko); Вапцаров (Vaptsarov), Иван (Ivan); Кираджиев (Kiradzhiev), Светлин (Svetlin) (1980). Географски речник на България [Geographic Dictionary of Bulgaria] (in Bulgarian). София (Sofia): Наука и култура (Nauka i kultura).
