Under conditions of mountain and plateau topography which prevail in eastern provinces of the USSR the river channel morphology is mostly controlled by geologic and geomorphic factors. Taking the Yana River as an example the channel morphology is shown to be directly connected with structural elements only for largest channel sections (about few hudreds of kilometers long) in channels with wide floodplains, and for macromeanders in incised channels. In both cases geologic and geomorphic structure is most evident in the channel subdivision into uniform compartments, each characterised with constant character of the channel process and consequently with uniform channel morphology.