THE YAKUTAT AREA 



By Frederica de Laquna 

 GEOGRAPHY 



The region in which our archeological investigations were pursued 

 includes Yakutat Bay and the coastal plain to the southeast as far as 

 Dry Bay. Yakutat Bay has its entrance between Point Manby 

 (59° 41' N., 140° 19' W.) and Ocean Cape (59° 32' N., 139° 51' W.), 

 where it is 16 miles wide. It extends northeastward about 33 miles, 

 narrowing to a width of 3 miles or less, then turns southeastward 

 toward the ocean for a distance of 28 miles. The coastal plain 

 between Yakutat and Dry Bays is about 50 miles long, and from 5 to 

 14 miles -wade between the open Gulf of Alaska and the snow-covered 

 peaks of the Saint Elias Range. 



The southern shores of Yakutat Bay, including the chain of islands 

 (Khantaak to Knight Islands) along its eastern edge, and the fore- 

 shores northwest and southeast of the bay, are all low-lying terrain, 

 less than 250 feet above sea level. Most of this land is composed of 

 alluvial gravels, sands, and silts, and is studded with lakes and swamps. 

 The western shore of the bay is covered by the terminal moraine of 

 Malaspina Glacier, and similar outwash deposits are found along the 

 opposite shore. AU of the permanent native settlements are in these 

 lowland areas. (See numbered sites on map 3.) 



Steep rocky shores are encountered at Eleanor Cove, on the eastern 

 side of Yakutat Bay near Knight Island, about 15 miles above the 

 mouth of the bay, and on Bancas Point to the northwest. Here the 

 land rises sharply to altitudes of over 4,000 feet, leaving only small 

 areas at the mouths of streams where the natives camp in the spring 

 when fishing for halibut or hunting bears and seals. 



Disenchantment Bay, the "heart" of Yakutat Bay, north of Point 

 Latouche and Bancas Point, is filled with floating ice discharged from 

 the glaciers that descend to tidewater from the high mountains of 

 the Saint Ehas Range, here over 14,000 and 15,000 feet in elevation. 

 These icy waters are the principal seal-hunting areas of the region, 

 and the natives also gather sea gull eggs from the rocky cliffs of 

 Haenke ("Egg") Island in Disenchantment Bay. 



From Disenchantment Bay, Russell Fiord continues southeast for 

 about 10 miles, where it sends out to the west a 7-mile-long arm, 

 Nunatak Fiord, at the head of which is another glacier. The bare 



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