The most unique river vessels in the world

• The most unique river vessels in the world

If you ask what Belyaev, then few will answer this question. But only some 100 years ago, these giant ships sailed along the Volga and Vetluga. Bielany, perhaps, the most unique river vessels in the world. They were huge even by today's standards the court. According to some reports, there Belyany up to 120 meters. Depth may be 6 meters.

Let's find out what was their uniqueness.

Long ago, before the revolution, every spring, as soon as the ice Vetluga been opened, the inhabitants of coastal villages fascinated gaze accompanied the majestic snow-white buildings, slowly passing by the river.

to dignify their "Bielany" - white, then. In contrast to the rafts and they Soim shipping only processed "white" wood - because were considered more valuable and expensive.

The director of the museum of local lore Krasnobakovsky District Irina S. Corina believes that the beginning of shipbuilding fishing began in the XVII century, when, after Archer's rebellion in 1698 at Vetluga and its tributary Ustuu were exiled family archers, as well as the guilty shipwrights.

Species river vessels at the time was a great multitude: gusyanki, podchalki, polulodki, ferries, barges ... Shipbuilding case was considered a prestigious and profitable: to appear in Russia available railways and roads river was the fastest and cheapest way to transport passengers and cargo . Depending on the characteristics of the river on her unpopular certain types of ships.

Vetluga famous Bielany. They were built on only three shipyards, one of which was Bakovskaya.

The beautiful ... this was a sight - running along the blue waters of the majestic Vetluga Belyana. Not everyone probably thought about the cost of the incredible beauty of this work was created. rafters could hardly be likened to hard labor, with the only difference being that the hard labor - it is forced labor.

Load Belyaev correspond to their size and may be 100-150 thousand pounds (pud - 16 kg) in small Belyaev, but at large it reached 800 thousand pounds! That is, it was the size though not very big, but still ocean liner, although they sailed exclusively from the upper and to the lower reaches of the Volga and have never been more Astrakhan!

logging and timber rafting were barbaric methods in the absence of any mechanization. Cut wood workers went Artel'nykh, taking the food out of the house. They lived in the woods for three or four months is not spending time at home, content with the meager and monotonous food, sleeping in little huts-Zimnitsa that are poorly kept warm.

felled wood had to pull off to the river rafting (inflow Vetluga). There logs tied into units and when the flood began, driven to Vetluga (to the mouth of the river rafting). This was done using long poles that dragged associated logs from the coast to avoid congestion, and some brave lads sat on small rafts and famously raced to the mouth rechonki of fast water, directing the movement of the floating forest.

Despite the fact that work barge hauler was very dangerous, sometimes threatening the loss of health and even death, the people were here, as this work was poor though, but help in peasant life. Women also worked at Bielany, but their pay is much lower. Therefore, they floated in the rare cases when a raft serviced the whole family.

Forest in Bielany fit in a special way - in neat rows with wide openings, in the event of an accident you can quickly get to the place of breakage. In addition, properly stacked logs quickly dried up, which keeps it from rotting.

It is known that for the construction of a secondary Volga Belyany took about 240 logs of pine and fir 200. In this flat bottom was made of spruce boards, and boards - pine. The distance between frames - no more than half, due to which Belyany body strength was extremely high. At the same time, as it often happens with us in the past, we built Belyany first without a single nail, and has only later they began to knock together with iron nails.

But the most interesting in Bielany was, in general, its cargo - "white wood", that is, devoid of bark white-yellow timber. It is believed that because of this, something like her and called, but there is another point of view that the word "Belyana" associated with the White River. In any case, all Bielany were always white, because these ships served only one navigation and therefore never resins!

One of the latest Belyaev, the beginning of the 20th century.

But we loaded Belyany as not loaded and not loaded, no ship in the world, as evidenced by even a saying here: "disassemble Bielany one hand, nor gather Belyany all the cities." This occurred because the forest was laid in Bielany not just a pile, and the pile with many spans, to have access to her bottom in case of a leak. In this case, load boards Do not touch or put pressure on them. But since then they pressed sea water, between the load and the sides were inserted special wedges that as shrinkage replaced by larger and larger in size.

In this case, as soon as the wood begins to exceed the height board Belyaev began to stack the logs so that they were in favor of the board, and a new load was placed on them. Such projections called dissolution or reprimands, and they had to be able to place so as not to upset the balance of the ship. At the same time, dissolutions were sometimes overboard on four or more meters to the side, so that the width of the top of the vessel is much greater than on the bottom, and reached some Belyaev 30 meters!

The housing Belyany was pointed at both the front and rear, and ran it with the help of a huge wheel - lots, which took most of these kind of deal gate. He turned with the help of an enormous length of the log output from the stern on deck. Because of that lots Belyaev alloyed down the river is not the nose and stern. From time to time, moving his huge lot like a lazy whale tail, so she swam with the current, but, despite his clumsiness, has excellent maneuverability! In addition to the lot, at Bielany were large and small anchors weighing 20 to 100 pounds, as well as a great variety of the most different ropes, hemp and Mochalny.

Interestingly, and Bielany deck too is nothing other than the cargo, and any flooring of boards or boards of sawn and is so large that resembled the modern aircraft carrier deck. She put the gates 2-4 to lift the large anchors and tensioning ropes holding the auction. But closer to the stern on Bielany for equilibrium is established by two small huts - "kasenka", which served as home to the crew. Between the roofs of huts tossed high cross a bridge with carved in the middle of the booth, which was the pilot.

In this case, the whole booth was covered with carvings, and sometimes even painted paint "under the gold". Although the ship and it was purely functional, Belyaev however richly decorated with flags, and not only government and trade, but also its own flag of a particular merchant, usually depicting saints bless or any suitable characters on the occasion. these flags were sometimes so great that fluttered over the Bielany like a sail. But with spending on them is usually the merchants were not considered, because the main thing here was to declare itself!

Working at Bielany were 15 to 35 people, and the largest - from 60 to 80. Many of them are working on the pump that pumped water from the body, and these pumps was 10-12 pieces, because the body is always a little Bielany I proceeded. Because of this, Bielany loaded so that its nose submerged deeper than the food, and all the water flowed down there!

special flourishing construction Belyaev on the Volga reached in the middle of the XIX century, in connection with the beginning of a mass movement of the steamer. Since the ships while walking on the wood (and there were about 500 pieces), it is easy to imagine what an enormous amount of wood required all this fleet.

Firewood imported into the Volga ports exclusively on Bielany, and only gradually, due to the oil passage, the demand for firewood fell on the Volga. Nevertheless, even at the end of the XIX century they are continued to build up to 150 units per year, and by downloading the forest, rafted down the river up to Astrakhan.

Then these unique vessels understood, so much so that from them literally had no choice! "Kasenka" sold as a ready-made house, the forest went to the building material, hemp, burlap and ropes, not to mention the hardware - everything brought income owners Belyaev! Only small Belyaev, load the Astrakhan fish came back, drawn by the boatmen. But then they also dismantled and sold for firewood. Bielany keep afloat for more than one season turned out unprofitable!

History Belyaev interesting by the fact that some of them during a single navigation assemble and disassemble twice! For example, small Bielany in the place where the Volga comes close to the Don, moored to the bank, after which the entire load with their horse-drawn carts transported to the Don. After that, they assorted themselves Belyaev, carried behind the load, again collected and loaded them on a new place. Now the forest they floated in the lower reaches of the Don, where Belyany dealt for the second time!