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1955 Map of Baird Mountains D-3

Name: 1955 Topographic Map of Baird Mountains D-3
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1985
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1985

About this map

The Noatak River dominates this Arctic landscape, carving a wide valley through the heart of what is now the Noatak National Preserve. This 1955 survey, later updated to reflect the boundaries established by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, documents a wilderness devoid of roads or permanent settlements, where topographical surveying was conducted via aerial photogrammetry. The map identifies key landforms like Isaakluvik and geodetic markers such as Noatak East Base, which served as critical points for mapping this northern frontier.

South of the river, the Noatak Wilderness transitions toward the Kobuk Valley National Park, a region defined by high mountain drainages. Waterways such as Aklummayuak Creek, Kanyat Creek, and Sapun Creek represent the complex hydrological network feeding the larger basins. The presence of the Uyon Lakes in the north provides a rare cluster of standing water in an otherwise deeply dissected upland terrain.