River
Ljusnan
440 km from source to mouth · Sweden.
SwedenFlows into Ljusnefjärden6th longest in Sweden
In numbers
Length
440km
Average flow
230m³/s
Basin
19,828km²
Drop
518m
from 712 m to 194 m
Country
1
The journey
From source to mouth
440 km of river and 24 stops on the way: 1 towns and cities on its banks, dams, bridges and the tributaries that feed it.
- 0 kmSourceat 712 m
- 28 kmFunäsdalssjön2.1 km²
- 58 kmLossen35 km²
- 58 kmGaveltjärnen0.3 km²
- 99 kmGutterloktjärnen0.5 km²
- 101 kmVågarna0.3 km²
- 108 kmLomtjärnen6.2 km²
- 113 kmStavsjön1.4 km²
- 116 kmMagrassen1.2 km²
- 121 kmOrten3.2 km²
- 124 kmAvatjärnen0.4 km²
- 126 kmÖver-Ransjön1.1 km²
- 127 kmNeder-Ransjön2.1 km²
- 141 kmLinsellsjön2.5 km²
- 165 kmSvegssjön64 km²
- 165 kmTjuvforsen
- 169 kmHärjedalen Municipality10,061 people
- 170 kmMankellbron
- 175 kmSpetnästjärnen1.2 km²
- 178 kmByarforsen
- 210 kmLångströmssjön1.8 km²
- 222 kmStoråströmmens dämningsområde3.1 km²
- 231 kmSkärasen0.3 km²
- 234 kmÖjeforsens dämningsområde1.1 km²
- 238 kmKårsjön0.9 km²
- 253 kmLjusnefjärdenat 194 m
Water level along the river (RiverATLAS; the height is exaggerated). Towns: GeoNames and Wikidata; bridges, dams and tributaries: Wikidata.
River in Härjedalen and Hälsingland, Sweden
At the mouth it carries 230 m³/s on average: an Olympic pool every 11 seconds. It drops from 712 m to 194 m, 1.2 m per kilometre on average. Its basin covers 19,828 km², about the size of SI. 11,000 people live in it. Highest water, with the snowmelt: from May to June; lowest: from December to March. Dams and reservoirs hold back a large share of its water (29% of a year's flow).
Where to start
- Härjedalen MunicipalityLargest city on its banks · 10,061 people
- Mora Airport (MXX)Nearest airport with scheduled flights, 120 km from the cityCar hire at MXX airport (Mora)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- On the water4 ferry piers, marinas, boat rentals and boat ramps along the river (OpenStreetMap)
- Kayak and canoe1 put-ins and rapids mapped (OpenStreetMap)
- From June to AugustThe best months to visit
Ljusnan, month by month
Highest water: from May to June
Lowest water: from December to March. Freezing months (average below −4 °C): from December to February. Melting snow makes up much of its water. Best months to visit: from June to August.
From about 65 m³/s in the lowest month to 150 m³/s in the highest. An estimate: the monthly flow is modelled from the lowest and highest months of WaterGAP (RiverATLAS, 1971–2000) and the rain and snow along the river (WorldClim). Dams change the real rhythm. The chip is the average air temperature; below it, the month's rain.
Plan the trip
Plan the trip: boat trips, a bed by the river, a car
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
The basin
Ljusnan: the basin in numbers
11,574 km² of land send their water to this river. This is what lives on it.
- 11,000people live in the basin
- 1/km²people per km²
- 598maverage altitude of the basin
- 664mmof rain a year (basin average)
- 1.4°Caverage air temperature
- 19%protected areas
- 3.5%covered by lakes
- 1%permafrost
- 1.0km³held in reservoirs
What covers the basin
- 84% Forest
RiverATLAS (HydroATLAS v1.0, CC BY 4.0): land cover, people, protected areas, glaciers and dams over the whole basin upstream of the mouth.
Along the river
Ljusnan: what you find on the way
- 12WeirsVikarsjön (damm) and 11 more
- 2WaterfallsKvarnbäcksfallet, Övre Rändfallet
- 1RapidsVålsforsen
- 2Boat ramps
- 2MarinasSmåbåtshamn
- 10River beachesbadplats Långå, badplats Hede, Ljusnan, Dammen and 7 more
From OpenStreetMap, within 1.8 km of the river. Not mapped is not the same as not there.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Ljusnan in our other atlases
What our sister atlases know about the waterfalls on this river, the lakes it flows through, the beaches at its mouth, the mountains where it rises and the islands off its mouth.
2waterfalls on the riverCascadyas
20lakes on its wayLakeyas
21mountains at the sourcePeakyas
Waterfalls (2)
On the river, by Cascadyas
- Tjuvforsenkm 165
- Byarforsenkm 178
Cascadyas is coming soonOpen Cascadyas ↗
Lakes and reservoirs (20)
Lakes it flows through, by Lakeyas
- Funäsdalssjönkm 282.1km²
- Lossenkm 5835km²
- Magrassenkm 116 · 15 m deep1.2km²
- Ortenkm 121 · 23 m deep3.2km²
- Linsellsjönkm 141 · 18 m deep2.5km²
- Svegssjönkm 16564km²
- Storåströmmens dämningsområdekm 2223.1km²
- Skärasenkm 231 · 14 m deep0.3km²
12 more on LakeyasLakeyas is coming soonOpen Lakeyas ↗
Mountains at the source (21)
Within 15 km of the source, by Peakyas
- Skarsfjället7.2 km away1,594m
- Hyddkleppen11 km away
- Morraklumpen8.8 km away
- Strute12 km away
- Stora Skarvarna15 km away
- Skiltjulke9.6 km away
- Skenörsfjäll11 km away
- Ösjövålen4.2 km away
13 more on PeakyasOpen Peakyas ↗
From space
The source and the mouth, seen from orbit
Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX IT Services GmbH (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2016), CC BY 4.0. The glowing line is the river as drawn by RiverATLAS.
Photos
Ljusnan in pictures
Nearby
Rivers nearby
Sweden350 km140 m³/s111 km awayIndalsälvenSweden420 km460 m³/s121 km awayDalälvenSweden220 km350 m³/s181 km awayÖsterdal RiverSweden300 km150 m³/s157 km awayGudbrandsdalslågen
Norway204 km220 m³/s280 km awayKlarälvenSweden460 km160 m³/s305 km awayUme älvSweden467 km450 m³/s319 km awayVindel RiverSweden450 km250 m³/s313 km awayWhere these numbers come from
| Name, length, places | Wikidata (Q1160449) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Course, profile, basin | RiverATLAS v1.0 (HydroATLAS, Linke et al. 2019) · CC BY 4.0 — followed along the river network from the point given by Wikidata |
| Flow | WaterGAP (RiverATLAS), 1971–2000 · CC BY 4.0 |
| Climate along the river | WorldClim (RiverATLAS), 1970–2000 · CC BY 4.0 |
| Towns, bridges, dams | Wikidata · CC0; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Along the river | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Our other atlases | Cascadyas, Lakeyas, Peakyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; HydroLAKES · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every source and licence is on the data sources page.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers or canyons?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Coming soonVisit mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Coming soonVisit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Coming soonVisit 
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.You are here
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Coming soonVisit