Sfântu Gheorghe Branch of the Danube

The Sfântu Gheorghe (St. George) branch is the southern branch of the Danube in the Danube Delta, Tulcea County. It splits from the Tulcea branch at Ceatalul (the Fork of) Sfântu Gheorghe, downstream of the city of Tulcea, where kilometre 108.8 of the branch lies, and flows south-east to its mouth on the Black Sea, at kilometre 0, next to Sfântu Gheorghe village. Along it lie the villages of Nufăru, Mahmudia, Uzlina and, at the end, Sfântu Gheorghe. According to the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Administration (ARBDD), Sfântu Gheorghe is the river's oldest branch: it built the first Danube delta (the Sfântu Gheorghe I delta) through a passage at the southern end of the Letea-Caraorman ridge, and later, after the Sulina branch had built its own delta, it raised a second delta at its mouth (the Sfântu Gheorghe II delta). In Roman times the right bank of the Tulcea and Sfântu Gheorghe branches marked the border of the Empire, and archaeological sites of that period cluster here, according to the inventory published by the Danube Delta National Institute (INCDDD) in 2016. The branch used to be very sinuous, with free meanders between kilometres 90 and 22; between 1981 and 1992 the meanders were cut through by straightening canals, which shortened the water's path by about 32 km. The former loops survive as old channels, some of them silting up, such as the Lower Dranov meander, 8.8 km long (GeoEcoMar, 2022). The Navrom Delta passenger ship runs on the Tulcea to Sfântu Gheorghe line (about 120 km by water), and the official ARBDD boat routes numbered 5 to 8 start from Murighiol (for example route 7: Murighiol, Uzlina, Lake Uzlina, Lake Isac, the Perivolovca channel). Route 14 passes through Sfântu Gheorghe (Sulina → Busurca channel → Lake Roșu → Lake Erenciuc → Sfântu Gheorghe → Cordon Litoral channel → Sulina), and route 15 starts from the village along the Turcească channel to the entrance of the Sfântu Gheorghe lagoon (Meleaua). On the left bank, between the branch and Lake Erenciuc, lies the Erenciuc alder wood, the only forest in the delta where black alder grows in a compact stand and a nesting site of the white-tailed eagle; it is a strictly protected area, so it can only be seen from the water. At the river mouth, which can be reached on foot from the village along the ARBDD themed trail D8 (Natura Trail), flocks of pelicans often gather on the opposite bank and common terns fish over the water; the trail leaflet warns against swimming at the mouth because of the whirlpools. The branch is a commercial fishing ground for Danube shad, while the former meanders are fish recovery zones where recreational fishing is allowed only as catch-and-release; sturgeons may not be fished at all in the reserve. Recreational fishing is allowed only in the approved zones and with an ARBDD fishing permit, separate from the access permit. Every visit to the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve requires the access permit issued by the reserve administration (ARBDD). It can be bought online on ddbra.ro, by SMS, at SelfPay terminals or, in cash, at the information centres in Sulina, Crișan and Murighiol; children, pupils, students and pensioners receive it free of charge. Local guides recommend spring and autumn for birdwatching. The branch lies entirely within the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO biosphere reserve since 1990, a Ramsar wetland and a World Heritage Site since 1991, and within the Natura 2000 sites ROSCI0065 Delta Dunării and ROSPA0031 Delta Dunării și Complexul Razim-Sinoie. It is managed by ARBDD. Boats may only use the routes set by ARBDD, and entering the strictly protected areas next to the branch (Erenciuc, Lake Belciug, Sacalin-Zătoane) is forbidden under Law 82/1993. Did you know that Lake Belciug, which lies inside the last meander of the branch, between kilometres 20 and 25, is about 7 m deep? Its isolation has preserved threatened fish such as crucian carp, tench and ide, which have formed local ecotypes, and the common crane has been reported nesting in the surrounding reed beds. The lake is a strictly protected area, so it stays out of tourists' reach.