| Name other | Torridalselva[1] Otri[2] |
|---|---|
| Country | Norway |
| County | Agder |
| Municipalities | Bykle, Valle, Bygland, Evje og Hornnes, Iveland, Vennesla, Kristiansand |
| Source1 location | Setesdalsheiene, Bykle Municipality, Norway |
| Source1 coordinates | 59.6284°N 7.4321°E |
| Source1 elevation | 896 metres (2,940 ft) |
| Mouth location | Skagerrak, Kristiansand Municipality, Norway |
| Mouth coordinates | 58.1434°N 8.0134°E |
| Mouth elevation | 0 metres (0 ft) |
| River system | Otra |
| Length | 245 km (152 mi) |
| Discharge1 avg | 150 m3/s (5,300 cu ft/s) |
The Otra[2] is the largest river in the Sørlandet region of Norway. It begins in Setesdalsheiene mountains at the lake Breidvatnet in Bykle Municipality in Agder county, just south of the border with Vinje Municipality in Telemark county. The river then flows south through Bykle, Valle, Bygland, Evje og Hornnes, Iveland, Vennesla, and Kristiansand municipalities. The river empties into the Skagerrak in the center of the city of Kristiansand on the southern coast of Norway.
The Otra is 245 kilometres (152 mi) long, making it Norway's eighth-longest river. There are many large lakes along the river including: Åraksfjorden, Byglandsfjorden, Hartevatn, and Kilefjorden. There are 12 hydroelectric power plants built along the river, which produce much of the electricity for the southern part of Norway.[3]
The salmon do well in the Otra river because the water is not too acidic. The calcareous rocks in the catchment area at the northern end of the Setesdal valley give the water a certain buffer capacity against acidification.[4]
References
- ^ "Informasjon om stadnamn" (in Norwegian). Norgeskart. Kartverket. Retrieved 2026-05-08.
- ^ "Informasjon om stadnamn" (in Norwegian). Norgeskart. Kartverket. Retrieved 2026-05-08.
- ^
- ^ "Mindre forurensning og mer laks i Otra" (in Norwegian). Dirna.no. Archived from the original on 2020-04-09. Retrieved 2012-02-10.