Nam Tha
| Nam Tha | ||
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| Data | ||
| location | Northwest Laos | |
| River system | Mekong | |
| Drain over | Mekong → South China Sea | |
| source | north of Luang Namtha on the Chinese border 21 ° 13 ′ 0 ″ N , 101 ° 32 ′ 0 ″ E |
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| muzzle | at Pak Tha coordinates: 20 ° 6 ′ 40 ″ N , 100 ° 35 ′ 38 ″ E 20 ° 6 ′ 40 ″ N , 100 ° 35 ′ 38 ″ E
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| length | 215 km | |
The Nam Tha ( Lao : ນໍ້າ ທາ , River Tha ) is an approximately 215 km long river in northwestern Laos . It rises in the province of Luang Namtha near the Chinese border, flows through narrow valleys to the southwest and flows into the Mekong at Pak Tha near Ban Huay Xay in the province of Bokeo , of which it is one of the twelve most important tributaries .
The most important places along the river are the city of Luang Namtha , which is named after him, the Nalae , founded in 1980 , which represents the border between the upper and lower reaches and Pak Tha at the mouth. The villages of Ban Mo with the Tham Davadueng cave temple and Ban Peng , where there are several waterfalls and caves, are of cultural and tourist importance .
The upper reaches of the Nam Tha roughly represent the eastern border of the Nam Ha nature reserve . The river flows through the districts (Muang) Namtha , Nalae (both province Luang Namtha) as well as Pha Oudom and Pak Tha (both province Bokeo) from the source to the mouth. . On a short section it forms the border to the neighboring province of Oudomxay .
Since there are no major road connections in the region, the Nam Tha between Luang Namtha and Pak Tha is the most important transport route. Due to the shallows and narrow spots, however, it is only accessible by small boats (mostly open long-tail boats ). The drive from Luang Namtha to Huay Xay on the Thai border takes two days and was one of the most important connections from China to Thailand until the modern expressway was built further north. During the dry season from March to May, due to the low water level, shipping is possible up to a maximum of Nalae, but at this point the otherwise barely passable road between Nalae and Luang Namtha is again passable.
Natural resources such as copper , gold , zircon and sapphire can be found near the river .
literature
- Andrew Burke, Justine Vaisutis: Laos , pp. 214f