Tver , Dubna , Rybinsk , Yaroslavl , Nizhny Novgorod , and Kazan . From there it turns south, flows past Ulyanovsk , Tolyatti , Samara , Saratov and Volgograd , and discharges into the Caspian Sea below Astrakhan at 28 meters (91.9 ft) below sea level. At its most strategic point, it