Major settlements On its path northward to the
Semberija region on the Bosnian side, and Mačva on the Serbian, both part of a wider area of
Posavina, where it meets with the Sava, the Drina river passes through
Podrinje and number of settlements situated within the region:
Foča,
Ustikolina,
Goražde,
Ustiprača,
Međeđa,
Višegrad,
Perućac,
Bratunac,
Ljubovija,
Zvornik and
Mali Zvornik,
Loznica.
Border river The Drina flows between the mountains of
Zvijezda and
Sušica and it is flooded by the artificial
Lake Perućac on the northern slopes of the
Tara mountain, created by the Bajina Bašta power plant. The villages of
Prohići and
Osatica (in Bosnia and Herzegovina) are located on the lake, as well as the ruins of the medieval town of Đurđevac. The river is dammed at the village of
Perućac, where a strong well springs out from the Tara mountain, flowing into the Drina as a waterfall. In addition, the waters of Drina are used for several
fish ponds for the
rainbow trout spawning. The river continues to the villages of
Peći,
Dobrak,
Skelani (in Bosnia and Herzegovina) and
Zaugline (in Serbia), reaching the town of
Bajina Bašta. At the villages of Donja Crvica and
Rogačica, the Drina makes a large turn, completely changing its direction from the northeast to the northwest. This distinct geographical feature forms the
Osat and
Ludmer regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which are separated by the river from the
Azbukovica part of the
Podrinje region of Serbia.
Course Upper Drina . with the Drina-
Ćehotina confluence, Upper Drina, Bosnia and Herzegovina. From its point of origin, at
Šćepan Polje (in Montenegro) and Hum (Bosnia and Herzegovina), the Drina, after initial a couple of hundred meters of running westward around the
Maluša mountain, starts its northward general direction flow for the rest of its journey toward the
Sava. Here it flows through the villages of
Kosman, Prijedjel, Dučeli, Čelikovo Polje, Kopilovi,
Trbušće,
Brod na Drini, until it reach a town of
Foča. In this section the Drina receiving waters of the rivers of Sutjeska, Bjelava and Bistrica, from the left, while in Foča it gets replenished with a significant amount of waters from the Ćehotina, which flows from the right. Downstream from Foča, the Drina enters a wide valley, the -long Suhi Dol-Biserovina area between the southernmost slopes of the
Jahorina mountains from the north and the
Kovač mountains from the south. The villages of Zlatari, Jošanica, Ustikolina, Cvilin, Zebina Šuma, Osanica, Kolovarice, Vranići, Mravinjac, Biljin,
Vitkovići and Zupčići are located in the valley, as well as the town of
Goražde. The river receives the Kolunska Rijeka and the Osanica as tributaries from the left. The Drina continues in the northern general direction, flowing close to the villages of Žuželo, Odžak, Kopači and Ustiprača, entering the long
Međeđa gorge, carved between the
Vučevica mountains from the south and the southern slopes of the
Devetak mountains from the north. The narrowest part of the Međeđa gorge is Tijesno, the -long section of the gorge where the river is at its narrowest (only wide), but also at its deepest (12 m). In this section, it receives the Prača river from the left, and the Janjina and Lim rivers from the right. The villages of Trbosilje,
Međeđa and Orahovci are located in the gorge, which is for the most part flooded by the artificial
Višegrad lake, created by the
Višegrad hydroelectric power plant.
Middle Drina . At the town of
Višegrad, the Drina receives the
Rzav River from the right and turns northwest at the
Suva Gora mountain into the
Klotjevac gorge. The gorge is long and up to 1 km (3,200 ft) deep, carved between the mountains of
Bokšanica (from the west) and
Zvijezda (from the east). The villages of
Sase,
Resnik,
Đurevići and
Gornje Štitarevo lie in the gorge and the Kukal river flows into the Drina from the right. At the Slap village, the Drina receives the
Žepa river from the right and turns sharply to the west, becoming a border river between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia near the village of Jagoštica. Flowing on the western slopes of the mountainous
Azbukovica, the Drina passes next to the villages of Gvozdac, Okletac, Strmovo, Bačevci, Donje Košlje, Drlače, Vrhpolje, Donja Bukovica (in Serbia), Boljevići, Fakovići, Tegare, Sikirići and Voljevica (in Bosnia and Herzegovina), before it reaches the towns of
Ljubovija in Serbia, the centre of the Azbukovica region (or Upper Podrinje from the Serbian side), and
Bratunac, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the centre of the Ludmer region. Here the Drina receives the right tributary of
Ljuboviđa and continues between the mountains of
Jagodnja and
Boranja (in Serbia), and
Glogova (in Bosnia and Herzegovina). After the ruins of the medieval town of Mikuljak and the villages of Mičići, Uzovnica, Crnča, Voljevci (in Serbia), Krasanovići, Dubravice, Polom and Zelinje (in Bosnia and Herzegovina), the Drina is flooded again, this time by the artificial
Zvornik Lake, created by damming for the exploitation by the
Zvornik Hydroelectric Power Station. The villages of Amajic, Culine (in Serbia), Sopotnik, Drinjača and Djevanje (in Bosnia and Herzegovina) are located on the lake. This is also where the
Drinjača river flows into the Drina (now the Zvornik lake) from the left, flowing from the Bosnian region of
Gornji Birač.
Lower Drina . After the dual town of
Zvornik (Bosnia and Herzegovina)-
Mali Zvornik (Serbia), the Drina flows between the Bosnian mountain of
Majevica and the Serbian mountain of
Gučevo, and enters the Lower Podrinje region. For the rest of its flow after the village of
Kozluk, it has no major settlements on the Bosnian side (except for the town of
Janja, which is several km away from the river, and some smaller settlements, like Branjevo and Glavičice). On the Serbian side, the Drina passes next to the villages of Brasina and Rečane, the ruins of the medieval town of
Koviljkin grad, the
spa and town of
Banja Koviljača, the industrial town and center of the Podrinje region,
Loznica, and its largest suburb,
Lozničko Polje. The Drina enters the confluence region of its course, the southern
Pannonian plain, including the Serbian regions of
Jadar (where it receives the
Jadar river) and
Iverak (where it receives the
Lešnica). This is where the rivers spills in many arms and flows, creating the largest flood plain in former
Yugoslavia, which the river divides in half. The east side,
Mačva, is in Serbia, and the west side,
Semberija, in Bosnia and Herzegovina (where it receives the
Janja river). The Drina spills over and meanders, forming shallows, islands and sandbars, before emptying into the Sava river between the Serbian village of
Crna Bara and the Bosnian
Bosanska Rača. The variability of the water flow and low altitude resulted in several course changes during history. The Drina previously flowed into the Sava river near
Šabac, to the east of the present mouth. == Ecology and wildlife ==