Onega Bay Onega Bay The Onega Bay () is located in the Republic of Karelia and Arkhangelsk Oblast in Northwestern Russia, west of the city of Arkhangelsk. It is the southernmost of four large bays and gulfs of the White Sea, the others being the Dvina Bay, the Mezen Bay, and the Kandalaksha Gulf. The area of the bay is . The Onega Bay is long and - wide. The average depth of the bay is , and the maximum depth is . The bay freezes in winter. Onega, Kem, and Vyg Rivers flow into the bay. The bay has numerous islands.
Arkhangelsk evidence of a stronger case of Russian colonization than previously thought. In the 12th century, the Novgorodians established the Archangel Michael Monastery (named after Michael the Archangel) in the estuary of the Northern Dvina River. The main trade center of the area at that time was Kholmogory, located southeast of Arkhangelsk, up the Dvina River, about downstream from where the Pinega River flows into the Dvina. Written sources indicate that Kholmogory existed early in the 12th century, but there is no archeological material to illuminate the early history of the town. It is not known whether the origin of this