Ponoy River
| Ponoy | |
| Ponoi | |
| River | |
 | |
| Country | Russia |
|---|---|
| Region | Murmansk Oblast |
| Tributaries | |
| - left | Purnach |
| - right | Acheryok |
| Source | |
| - location | Keivy Uplands, Murmansk Oblast, Russia |
| Mouth | |
| - location | Cape Korabelniy, Murmansk Oblast, Russia |
| Length | 426 km (265 mi) |
| Basin | 15,500 km2 (5,985 sq mi) |
Ponoy River (Russian: Поно́й) is a river on the Kola Peninsula in Russia. It is 426 km in length. The area of its basin is 15,500 km².
Geography
The Ponoy's source lies in the western end of the Keivy Uplands, 50 km east of Lake Lovozero, in the middle of the Kola Peninsula. The river then flows towards the east, threading a winding path through a landscape of hills and boggy plains for most of its course. The Ponoy receives several tributaries from the north, the largest being the Acheryok. Like the Ponoy itself, these also has their sources in the Keivy Uplands.
Below its confluence with the Purnach River, some 50 km from the sea, the river changes character and flows down a steep-sided, canyon-like valley with many rapids. It finally flows into the White Sea at Cape Korabelniy, at the eastern end of the Kola Peninsula.
The river freezes over in late October to early November, and stays frozen until the first half of May.
Wildlife and fish
The river is very rich in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). It has become very popular among European fishing tourists, and there are fishing camps along the river.
Favourite salmon fishing patterns are the Kola Vulcan, Kola Blue Fire, Kola Fire and the Kolalander.
There are lots of ducks along its banks, and muskrats are common.