1953 Map of Baird Inlet D-5

About this map

Baird Inlet defines this landscape of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, where water and land dissolve into a complex pattern of tundra ponds and larger water bodies. Established early in the 1950s, this area is captured within the boundaries of the Clarence Rhode National Wildlife Range Area No 1 and Clarence Rhode National Wildlife Range Area No 2, reflecting a period of active federal conservation efforts in the Alaskan territory. Dominating the central portion of the sheet is Kaghasuk Lake, its irregular shoreline illustrating the fluid nature of this coastal environment. To the southeast, Kagaluk Lake further characterizes the immense network of freshwater basins that support the region's migratory bird populations. This 1953 survey, derived from photogrammetric methods from 1951 and 1952, provides an essential record of the hydrology before subsequent climate shifts impacted the delta's fragile permafrost and drainage systems.