Struma River

Struma River, river in western Bulgaria and northeastern Greece, rising in the Vitosha Massif of the Rhodope Mountains in Bulgaria, southwest of Sofia. It follows a course of 258 miles (415 km) south-southeast via Pernik to the Aegean Sea, which it enters 30 miles (50 km) west-southwest of Kavála. The area of its drainage basin is 4,208 square miles (10,898 square km). The Struma River valley is a direct routeway from Sofia to the Aegean. Major tributaries are the Dzherman, the Rilska, the Angítis, and the Strumeshnitsa (Strumica in Macedonia) rivers. The Struma River valley is a major source of brown coal for Bulgaria—coal is obtained at Pernik, Bobov Dol, and Brezhani.

The river’s lower course, south of the Rupel Pass in Greece, was canalized in 1930. Lake Akhinós was drained and Lake Kerkínis was filled in for flood control. The river’s lower course is now a wide agricultural valley.