1955 Map of Point Lay B-1

About this map

The Epizetka River and Kukpowruk River dominate this mid-century landscape in the remote North Slope. Photogrammetric methods from 1955 aerial photographs, later edited and published by the Geological Survey, capture a vast system of tundra wetlands and meandering waterways. The drainage patterns reflect the influence of the Kiklupiklak Hills and Amatusuk Hills to the south, which channel seasonal runoff toward the Arctic coast. The map also documents Kuvirok Lake, situated among countless unnamed thermokarst ponds typical of this permafrost region. Surveyed before modern infrastructure reached the area, the map shows land lines based on predetermined locations from the Bureau of Land Management rather than on-the-ground markers, reflecting the logistical challenges of Arctic mapping during the Cold War era.