Head of the Class

Steel-grey clouds loom over Ekwok as cold raindrops pelt the Nushagak River. This famed southwest Alaska river — one of the largest producers of Chinook salmon in the state—flows past this remote Yup’ik Eskimo village before draining into Bristol Bay. The river and its abundance of fish form the lifeblood of this community of 130 residents, about 70 miles from the mouth of the bay.