Velikaya

Velikaya
Physical characteristics
Mouth	Lake Peipus
Length	430 km (270 mi)

For the Velikaya river in Far East Siberia, see Velikaya River (Chukotka).

The Velikaya (Russian: Великая) is a river in Novosokolnichesky, Pustoshkinsky, Sebezhsky, Opochetsky, Pushkinogorsky, Ostrovsky, Palkinsky, and Pskovsky Districts of Pskov Oblast, as well as in the city of Pskov in Russia. It is a major tributary of Lake Peipus and belongs to the basin of the Narva River.It is 430 k m long, and the area of its basin 25,200 square kilometres (9,700 sq mi). The name of the river means literally "Grand" or "Great" in Russian.

The river starts in the Bezhanitsy highlands in the south of Pskov Oblast, flows north through the cities of Opochka, Ostrov and Pskov, finally to reach Lake Peipus. In the years 2007-2009 the river had dangerous germs in it, which could make an individual very ill. The river was not safe to swim in during the years. The contamination was mainly in the Pskov part of the river.