Our Communities

Aleknagik

Current Population:	213 (2002 est. by State Demographer, DOL/WD)
Incorporation Type:	2nd Class City
Borough Located In:	Unorganized
School District:	Southwest Region Schools
Regional Native Corporation:	Bristol Bay Native Corporation
BBEDC Board Representitive:	Name: Gusty Chythlook Sr.
City Contact:	Phone: (907) 842-5953
Tribal Council Contact:	Phone: (907) 842-2080

Location:
Aleknagik is located at the head of Wood River on the southeast end of Lake Aleknagik, 16 miles northwest of Dillingham. It lies at approximately 59.27306° North Latitude and -158.61778° West Longitude. (Sec. 31, T010S, R055W, Seward Meridian.) Aleknagik is located in the Bristol Bay Recording District. The area encompasses 61.5 sq. miles of land and 0.0 sq. miles of water. Aleknagik is in a transitional climate zone. The primary influence is maritime, although a continental climate does affect the weather here. Average summer temperatures range from 30 to 66; average winter temperatures range from 4 to 30. Annual precipitation is 20 to 35 inches, including 93 inches of snow. Fog and low clouds are common during July and August, and may preclude access. The lake and river are ice-free from June through mid-November.

History:
Wood River and Aleknagik Lake have been used historically as summer fish camps. Aleknagik means "Wrong Way Home," because Natives returning to their homes along the Nushagak River would sometimes become lost in the fog and find themselves swept up the Wood River with the tide, inadvertently arriving at Aleknagik Lake. The 1929 U.S. Census found 55 people living in the "Wood River village" area to the south. During 1930, there were five families living on the shores of the lake year-round, the Waskeys. Polleys, Hansons, Yakos, and Smiths. A log cabin territorial school was built on the south shore of the lake in 1933, and Josie Waskey was the first teacher. Attracted by the school, other facilities, and plentiful fish, game and timber, a number of families from Goodnews, Togiak, and Kulukak area relocated to Aleknagik. A post office was established in 1937. A two-story framed school with a teacher apartment was constructed in 1938. By 1939, Aleknagik had 78 residents, over 30 buildings, and a small sawmill. In the late 1940s, a Seventh-Day Adventist Mission and School was established on the north shore. During the 1950s, a Moravian Church and a Russian Orthodox Church were built in Aleknagik and over 35 families lived along the lake. In 1959, the state constructed a 25-mile road connecting the south shore to Dillingham. The road was passable only during the summer months, until the late 1980s, when it was upgraded and maintained year-round. The City was incorporated in 1973. Over 24 additional square miles were annexed to the City in April 2000.

Culture:
It is a traditional Yup'ik Eskimo area, with historical influences from the Seventh-Day Adventists, Russian Orthodox and Moravians. Fishing and subsistence activities are practiced.

Economy:
Many residents participate in commercial and subsistence activities on the Bristol Bay coast during the summer. 33 residents hold commercial fishing permits. Trapping is also an important means of income. Most families depend to some extent on subsistence activities to supplement their livelihoods. Salmon, freshwater fish, moose, caribou, and berries are harvested. Poor fish returns and prices since 1997 have significantly affected the community.

Facilities:
The majority of residents (49 homes) have household plumbing, and most use individual wells. 12 homes do not have water or sewer service - some haul water from the community center, and a few are served by a spring water catchment system. Septic tanks, leechate fields and public sewage lagoons are used for sewage disposal. The North Shore uses eleven shared residential effluent pumps (REP units) which discharge into a piped system. There are three landfill sites. The North Shore landfill is being relocated; the South Shore landfill has an incinerator but is unfenced. A third landfill is located 2 miles from the South Shore, on the West side of the Aleknagik-Dillingham road. Nushagak Electric in Dillingham provides electricity to Aleknagik.

Transportation:
Aleknagik is the only regional village with a road link to Dillingham, a 25-mile road which connects the south shore. The "New Aleknagik" airport is a State-owned 2,070' gravel airstrip located on the north shore, and regular flights are scheduled through Dillingham. The north shore of the lake is not road accessible; residents use skiffs to travel to town on the south shore. Moody's Aleknagik Seaplane Base, also on the north shore, accomodates float planes. There are two additional airstrips, the public Tripod Airport, a 1,250' turf-gravel airstrip located 2 miles southeast of Aleknagik, and the 7th Day Adventist's Mission School Airport, a 1,200' gravel/dirt airstrip with a crosswind runway. The State owns and operates a 100' dock on the north shore of Aleknagik Lake. A breakwater, barge landing, boat launch ramp and boat lift are available on the north shore. Vehicles, skiffs, ATVs and snowmachines are the most frequent means of local transportation.

Climate:
Aleknagik is in a transitional climate zone. The primary influence is maritime, although a continental climate does affect the weather here. Average summer temperatures range from 30 to 66; average winter temperatures range from 4 to 30. Annual precipitation is 20 to 35 inches, including 93 inches of snow. Fog and low clouds are common during July and August, and may preclude access. The lake and river are ice-free from June through mid-November.