Monday, July 26, 2010

Day 71 – Ninilchik AK

It rained all last night and the rain has continued throughout today. The forecast is for more rain tomorrow. Today has turned into a camp day due to the rain. Not much to do but relax, catch up on some reading and watch the tide go out and come in.

The tides are quite impressive here. High tide was 21.14 feet and low tide was -1.71 feet, a change in water level of 22.85 feet right in front of the coach. At high tide the water edge is just a 20 feet from the coach. At low tide, it over a 100 yards away.

IMG_0576 High Tide 

IMG_0575

Low Tide

Ninilchik originally was a Dena'ina Athabaskan lodging area used for hunting and fishing. The name Ninilchik was most likely derived from Niqnilchint, a Deni'ana Athabaskan word meaning “lodge is built place”.

The first people who would permanently stay in the village were from Kodiak Island. They were Russian Grigorii Kvasnikov and his Russian-Alutiiq wife Mavra Rastorguev (daughter of Agrafena of Afognak), and their children. They moved here in 1847 before the Alaska was purchased from Russa. The 1880, United States Census listed 53 "Creoles" living in Ninilchik in nine extended families. All nine founding families of Ninilchik are descendants of the Kvasnikovs and Alaska Natives.

The Russian language was spoken widely in Ninilchik among members of the old families as late as the mid-1950s and it is still understood and occasionally spoken by a few older people in Ninilchik today.

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