Ural Mountains

The northern Ural ridges rise above the forested headwaters of rivers flowing toward the Kama and Pechora. Parallel mountain chains are cut by valleys, while spruce and fir cover lower slopes. Routes from Cherdyn on the Kolva led across the mountains toward western Siberia, using rivers and portages to pass between watersheds. These highlands formed both a divide between river systems and a difficult passage for travelers moving east.