It starts in theUdmurt Republic, nearKuliga, flowing northwest for 200 kilometres (120 mi), turning northeast nearLoyno for another 200 kilometres (120 mi), then turning south and west inPerm Krai, flowing again through theUdmurt Republic and then through theRepublic of Tatarstan, where it meets the Volga south ofKazan.
Before the advent of railroads, importantportages connected the Kama with the basins of theNorthern Dvina and thePechora. In the early 19th century theNorthern Ekaterininsky Canal connected the upper Kama with theVychegda River (a tributary of the Northern Dvina), but was mostly abandoned after just a few years due to low use.
Even today, disputes over the primacy of the rivers continue: Volga or Kama? Scientific facts say that theVolga flows into the Kama, and not vice versa. The confluence of the Volga and the Kama has exactly the same water content (Volga: 3,500 m3/s; Kama: 4,100 m3/s). The source of the Volga (228 m) is below the source of the Kama (331 m), which is the main factor in determining the superiority of any river. Compared to the Kama basin (507,000 km2), the Volga has a larger basin (604,000 km2). More rivers flow into the Kama than the Volga. Experts have proven that the valley of the Kama River is more ancient than the Volga River valley. In other words, at the time of the existence of the ancient Kama, also known as the Paleo-Kama, there was no Volga. Later, geological changes caused the Volga to join the Kama at right angles. Also looking at the map, we can understand that the confluence of the Kama and the Volga is the continuation of the Kama canal. The bed of the Kama is lower, so the Volga clearly flows into the Kama.[3][better source needed]
