The 1949 ‘Long Walk’ that ended 11,000 years of nomadic life in Gates of the Arctic

The Nunamiut’s Final Journey to Anaktuvuk Pass

The Nunamiut people tracked caribou across Alaska’s Brooks Range for thousands of years. When herds crashed around 1900, most fled to the coast.

Some came back in the 1930s as caribou returned. Then in 1949, after a deadly flu outbreak, three families left their camp at Sulupaat.

They walked 100 miles with pack dogs, carrying just the basics – sourdough starter and military rations. At Tulugak Lake, they met five more families.

Together, they built Anaktuvuk Pass, the last Nunamiut settlement. This two-week "Long Walk" ended 11,000 years of nomadic life.

Gates of the Arctic National Park now tells this powerful story of the last nomads in North America.

Caribou Hunters Roamed Alaska’s Brooks Range for 11,000 Years

The Nunamiut were inland Iñupiaq hunters who followed caribou across 66,000 square miles of Alaska’s Brooks Range for over 11,000 years.

About 1,000-1,500 people split into 20 bands relied fully on caribou for food, clothes, shelter, and tools.

They built stone people (iñuksuk) scarecrows in lines up to 5 miles long to guide caribou into lakes for spear hunting from kayaks.

Their yearly pattern matched perfectly with caribou moving between the Arctic coast and mountains.

Starvation Struck When Caribou Herds Vanished Around 1900

Around 1900, Western Arctic Caribou Herd numbers dropped from peak levels to nearly none. The Nunamiut faced many food shortages as their main food source disappeared.

New sicknesses like flu, measles, and fevers killed hundreds during this hard time. Group caribou hunts stopped before 1900 because herds grew too small.

The people who thrived for thousands of years now faced a crisis unlike any before.

Families Fled to Coastal Whaling Towns to Survive

By 1920, all living Nunamiut had either died from sickness or moved to Alaska’s Arctic coast to avoid starving. Families spread out to coastal whaling towns where they could hunt sea animals and join the fur trade.

Simon Paneak’s family and others spent about 15 years learning coastal ways, marrying locals, and getting used to sea food sources. This move seemed to end the inland Nunamiut way of life after thousands of years.

Recovering Caribou Herds Drew Families Back to the Mountains

In 1938, several Nunamiut families returned to the Brooks Range as caribou numbers grew again and the fur trade slowed down.

Bush pilot Sig Wien found families at Chandler Lake in 1943, creating the first regular air contact with the outside world.

Families set up camps around Chandler Lake and the Killik River area, trying to bring back their old hunting ways. About 13 families split between these two main spots.

Deadly Flu Outbreak Forced a Life-Changing Decision

Spring 1949 brought a deadly flu outbreak to the Killik River families at Sulupaat camp near April Creek.

The sickness killed several people including Peter Morry (Aahaaliq), brother of family leader Maptigaq Morry, and Chris Hugo. Families buried their dead and made the tough choice to leave.

Fear of more sickness pushed the families to look for better places to live.

Dogs Carried Everything from Sourdough Starter to Military Salvage

Families at Sulupaat packed their few things using dogs fitted with caribou-hide pack saddles.

They took needed supplies like caribou skin sleeping bags, a treasured sourdough starter, some flour, bullets, and a five-gallon wood stove.

All family dogs carried loads including bedding, cooking pots made from old military stuff, and water buckets. Rhoda Ahgook, then a teen, later told about the daily routine of packing and caring for dogs.

Three Families Walked 100 Miles Through Wilderness in Two Weeks

Early summer 1949, three families totaling about 24 people started walking east from Killik River toward Tulugak Lake.

They walked over 100 miles of unmarked land for more than two weeks, hunting caribou along the way for fresh meat. At Narvagvak, they found left-behind C-rations from World War II, which gave them extra food.

Each day they built smudge fires to fight mosquitoes and set up wall tents.

Eight Families Reunited After Decades of Separation

Killik River families reached Tulugak Lake where five families from Chandler Lake had already moved on Sig Wien’s advice for better air service.

Wien talked the Chandler Lake families into believing the wide Anaktuvuk Valley would allow more reliable plane landings for supplies.

This meeting brought most living Nunamiut families together in one place for the first time in decades. Children went to school in a wall tent while families spent the summer at the lake.

Mountain Pass Location Offered Perfect Hunting Access

Fall 1949, the combined families moved 15 miles south from Tulugak Lake to the spot now called Anaktuvuk Pass.

They picked this location at the start of the John River for its great access to caribou migration routes through the mountain pass.

Trader Patrick Arnold came with the families, creating trade links for wolf pelts and supplies. The site gave them good water, caribou access, and a natural pass through the mountains.

America’s Most Isolated Post Office Served the New Settlement

By late 1949, about 40 people had created what would become Alaska’s only permanent inland Iñupiaq community.

The first post office opened in 1951 with Homer Mekiana as postmaster, considered America’s most isolated postal facility.

The village became incorporated in 1959 with construction of a school, airstrip, and Presbyterian church following in later years. This settlement represented a complete change from nomadic hunting to village life.

Last Nomadic Family Joined in 1960, Closing an 11,000-Year Chapter

The final nomadic Nunamiut family arrived at the Anaktuvuk Pass settlement in 1960, completing the transition.

After more than 11,000 years of following caribou migrations, the Nunamiut became the world’s last semi-nomadic people to adopt permanent settlement.

Traditional knowledge, language, and subsistence practices continued within the village structure, preserving cultural identity.

The 1949 Long Walk marked the definitive end of nomadic life in North America, as Anaktuvuk Pass remains the only Nunamiut settlement today.

Visiting Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, Alaska

You can visit Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve for free, but you’ll need a chartered flight from Fairbanks to Anaktuvuk Pass airstrip for around $300 round-trip.

The village museum costs $10 and runs 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM weekdays, with exhibits about the 1949 Nunamiut Long Walk when the last nomadic hunter-gatherers in North America settled permanently.

Most day tours include a village guide, and camping is available near the airstrip.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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