Eek River drains a watershed of 408,959 acres (165,500 ha) and flows generally west-northwest for 108 miles (174 km) to the Kuskokwim Delta, about 40 miles (64 km) south-southwest of Bethel and 32 miles (51 km) north of Quinhagak, Alaska. The river originates from a small lake at an elevation of about 2,700 feet (823 m) on the north flank of Mount Oratia. The Yup’ik for the river, first reported as ‘Ik’ in 1826 by Lieutenant Gavril Sarychev of the Imperial Russian Navy, has been spelled ‘Eek’ on US Coast and Geodetic Survey charts since 1880. The name translates to ‘our eyes’ or ‘two eyes,’ likely referring to the fall flood tide when the river reaches the top of the north bank. The community of Eek is situated on the south bank, about 11 miles (18 km) east of the Kuskokwim River. The delta is mainly composed of silt and sandy silt deposited in a nonmarine fluvial environment, transitioning from permafrost to unconsolidated sediments composed of alluvial, colluvial, glacial, marine, lacustrine, aeolian, and swamp deposits. Eek experiences erosion of the riverbank at a rate of about 6 feet (2 m) per year due to melting permafrost and traffic. The Eek River, bordered by alder, willow, and birch thickets, meanders through a low tundra plain with many lakes and small tributaries. The confluence with the Eenayarak River is about 18 miles (29 km) downstream from Eek village. The Eenayarak River is part of the Eek-Eenayarak-Kuskokwim water route traditionally used for hunting, fishing, and trapping. This route helps avoid the rough waters of Kuskokwim Bay, known for unexpected squalls that make coastal boat travel dangerous. In winter, residents often travel by snow machines on trails between villages.

The area around the present-day village of Eek was first occupied around 2,000 years ago by ancestors of the Yup’ik Eskimos. At that time, the region provided a strategic trading route along the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, connecting communities on both rivers. The earliest defined culture here is the Norton tradition, a terrestrial and maritime hunter-gatherer society. They lived in large semipermanent villages and used chipped slate tools, fish nets, and pottery for lamps and possibly cooking. Norton people settled in protected bays and sheltered areas within bedrock headlands, offering quick access to sea mammals and fish, and seasonal access to inland food resources like caribou and moose. Inland settlements likely emerged when the growing coastal population began exploiting tundra wetlands from 2,000 to 1,500 years ago. About 1,000 years ago, new cultural practices developed, possibly linked to the Thule culture‘s arrival. The Thule tradition likely originated farther north in the Bering Strait area and northern Alaska. Its people, or their influence, spread throughout the North American Arctic and Subarctic for reasons still unknown. The new developments in the region included various material technologies and a greater focus on marine resources. Notably, there was an increased emphasis on sea mammal hunting, the use of dog sleds, and a combat tradition involving the bow and arrow, as well as hide and wood armor. By the time Russian explorers arrived in the late 1700s and established trading posts between 1819 and 1851, manufactured goods were already present due to prehistoric trade across the Bering Strait. Since first contact with Europeans, local residents have gradually concentrated in fewer places due to trading opportunities, epidemics, participation in the cash economy, and access to schools and amenities in established villages. The village of Eek was originally on the Apokok River but moved to its current location in the 1920s because of flooding and erosion. In the 1930s, a Moravian Church and a US Bureau of Indian Affairs school were established in the new village.

The Kuskokwim River drainage, the second largest in Alaska, has historically provided residents of 40 communities with abundant fish for subsistence. Subsistence fishing in the Lower Kuskokwim Delta dates back thousands of years to the original Central Yup’ik inhabitants. Fishing is based either from a traditional family fish camp or a home village. Drift gill nets, fish wheels, and rods and reels are used for harvesting. The first important subsistence fishery of the year begins soon after the river ice breaks in May, when eulachon migrate into the delta. Residents use fine-meshed nets to catch eulachon, threading them onto willow sticks before drying and smoking them. Sockeye, chum, and Chinook salmon are typically harvested from June 1 to mid-July, while coho and pink salmon are caught in August and September. Blackfish and burbot are harvested in fall and winter. Dolly Varden fishing occurs from June through December, while trout are caught in early spring, summer, and again in late summer and early fall. Whitefish, sheefish, Arctic grayling, and northern pike are harvested year-round. The first commercial salmon harvest in the Kuskokwim River delta occurred in 1913. In 1920, five saltery operators processed approximately 35,000 Chinook salmon. The Kuskokwim area was closed to all fishing for export from 1926 to 1929. In 1930, regulations were modified to allow commercial fishing in part of Kuskokwim Bay. A floating cannery operated that year, and by 1932, three companies were engaged in commercial fishing. The catch was dried and sold as food for sled dogs during the 1930s, when dog teams were the primary means of freight transport to villages in western Alaska. In 1952, poor salmon runs led to the closure of the Kuskokwim River and delta to commercial fishing. Following statehood in 1959, management was transferred to the State of Alaska, focusing on salmon sustainability and subsistence needs. In the case of a surplus, commercial fishing opportunities were provided. Harvest levels increased until the mid-1990s, after which fishing efforts, harvests, and salmon prices decreased. Since 2010, Chinook salmon returns to the Kuskokwim River have been among the lowest on record. Recently, moderate to severe restrictions have been implemented to limit subsistence harvests and conserve Chinook salmon, impacting the subsistence lifestyle throughout the Kuskokwim River drainage. Read more here and here. Explore more of the Eek River and the Kuskokwim Delta here: