Kobuk Valley National Park
Kobuk Valley National Park, established on December 2, 1980, is unique as the only national park located above the Arctic Circle, encompassing around 1,750,000 acres of pristine wilderness in Alaska. This remote park is recognized for its dramatic landscapes, including the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes, which are formed from glacial deposits and shaped by wind. The area holds significant archaeological value, with evidence of ancient human habitation dating back at least ten thousand years, primarily linked to the Arctic Woodland Culture and their reliance on migrating caribou.
The park is defined by its rugged geography, bordered by the Waring and Baird Mountain ranges, and features diverse ecosystems that range from icy glaciers to grassy tundra. While the park experiences minimal human activity, it is a vital migration route for caribou, with herds numbering up to half a million traversing the dunes twice a year. Although access to Kobuk Valley is challenging, primarily by air, the summer months attract several thousand visitors seeking to explore its natural beauty and wildlife, which includes bears, moose, and a variety of birds. The park serves as a sanctuary for both its ecological diversity and its rich cultural history.
Kobuk Valley National Park
Park Information
- Date Established: December 2, 1980
- Location: Alaska
- Area: 1,750,000 acres
Overview
Kobuk Valley National Park is the only national park located above the Arctic Circle. Its remote location and harsh wilderness setting make it America’s least visited national park. The park sees little human activity or vehicle traffic but is heavily traveled by herds of caribou, which walk across the arctic sand dunes and other features in the park during their twice-annual migrations.
The area was not always as remote or forbidding in its environment. When most of the rest of North America was still covered with glacial ice, the area that is now part of the park was a temperate grassland that was home to many large mammals. It was also heavily traveled by ancient hunters who preyed after the caribou, mammoths, and other animals that lived there. As a result, Kobuk Valley National Park also has archeological importance.
History
Kobuk Valley National Park takes its name from the Kobuk River, which cuts through the center of the park. The river was named by the Inupiaq Eskimos; kobuk means “big river” in the Inupiaq language. The river and the lands around it have been important to the Inupiaq and others for thousands of years.
The land that makes up the park was shaped many millennia ago by glaciers. The ancient blocks of ice moved across the area, cutting into the ground to form rivers and valleys. The glaciers also ground some of the rock in the area into fine sand and small rocks. Water and wind carried these into the park to form one of its most unique features: arctic sand dunes that rival those in any desert.
The area was part of a land bridge that connected what is now Alaska to Asia. It had a temperate climate and was covered with grasslands. This made it ideal for many species of animals and the people who hunted them. Archaeologists believe that what they now identify as the Arctic Woodland Culture inhabited the area at least ten thousand years ago. The Onion Portage archeological site is a National Historic Landmark within the park that is dedicated to studying and protecting artifacts from this culture.
The ancient people in the area were known to hunt the large caribou herds that continue to migrate through the land in the present day. For thousands of years, people in the area have depended on the caribou as a major source of food. In contemporary times, as many as half a million caribou migrate through the Kobuk Valley and over the sand dunes twice a year.
More than 1.7 million acres of land in and around the valley were designated as part of the national park on December 2, 1980. The area is remote, and while it can be visited, it was not intended to be visited like most other national parks. Instead, it was made a national park to protect the wilderness environments and the archeologically important sites it contains.
Geology and Ecology
The Kobuk Valley is bracketed by the Waring and Baird Mountain ranges. These mountains, which were created during the Paleolithic period, were formed by rock ledges being heaved upward by the action of shifting tectonic plates. The Baird Mountain range reaches a peak height of about 4,750 feet (1,448 meters) and is made up of sedimentary and conglomerate rocks as well as some shale, sandstone, and limestone. The mountains of the Waring range, which is made mostly of sandstone, shale, conglomerate, and siltstone, are smaller and top off at about 2,000 feet (610 meters).
Between the mountains are several rivers, including the Kobuk and Salmon Rivers, as well as the Akillik, Hunt, Kaliguricheark, Kallarichuk, and Tutuksuk Rivers. The area around them includes several diverse ecosystems. These range from icy glaciers to grassy tundra to mountain climates. Some birch and spruce trees grow in the area, and on the sandy area around the dunes, temperatures approach 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37 degrees Celsius) in the summer months.
The park is not easily accessible over land and has no constructed paths or roads within its boundaries. There are natural trails created by animals or by the repeated passage of humans on foot or snowmobiles who pass through while hunting. Access to the park by non-natives is by air, with many guests and researchers flying in from the nearest airports at Anchorage or Fairbanks.
Despite being located entirely above the Arctic Circle, the northernmost portion of the globe known for extremely cold temperatures and difficult access, the park has a large 25 square mile (64 square kilometer) area of sand dunes. The sand they contain was created by the action of glaciers and deposited in the area thousands of years ago, when the dunes built up at the foot of the mountains. Winds stack and shape the dunes into piles as high as 100 feet (30 meters), and visitors who reach the dunes find them crossed with trails marked by the passage of caribou and grizzly bears.
Footprints are often the only signs people see of the wildlife in the area, even though it is far from uninhabited. In addition to housing both grizzly and black bears and the caribou that migrate across it, the park is home to moose, foxes, wolves, porcupines and other woodland animals. Fish such as salmon are abundant in its waters, and many birds of prey also live in the park.
While few people are inclined to visit a national park above the Arctic Circle that can usually only be reached by air, snowmobile, or hiking, the park does receive several thousand visitors annually. Many who wish to see the park’s natural attractions visit in the summer months, when temperatures are comfortable most days.
Bibliography
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King, Hobart M. “What Is ‘The Arctic?’” Geology.com, geology.com/maps/where-is-the-arctic/. Accessed 8 Dec. 2024.
“Kobuk Valley National Park.” Audubon Society, www.audubon.org/climate/national-parks/kobuk-valley-national-park. Accessed 8 Dec. 2024.
“Kobuk Valley National Park.” National Park Foundation, www.nationalparks.org/explore-parks/kobuk-valley-national-park. Accessed 8 Dec. 2024.
“Kobuk Valley National Park.” National Park Service, www.nps.gov/kova/index.htm. Accessed 8 Dec. 2024.
“Kobuk Valley National Park.” Travel Alaska, www.travelalaska.com/Destinations/Parks-and-Public-Lands/Kobuk-Valley-National-Park.aspx. Accessed 8 Dec. 2024.
“6 Wonders in Kobuk Valley: America’s Least Visited National Park.” Greatest American Road Trip, www.thegreatestroadtrip.com/kobuk-valley-national-park/. Accessed 8 Dec. 2024.
“Welcome to Kobuk Valley National Park.” National Park, 27 Apr. 2016, www.national-park.com/welcome-to-kobuk-valley-national-park/. Accessed 8 Dec. 2024.