It is 297 miles southwest of Anchorage. The area encompasses 72 sq. The climate is mainly maritime, characterized by cool, humid, and windy weather. Extremes from -46 to 88 have been recorded. Total precipitation is 20 inches annually, including 45 inches of snowfall.
Fog is common during summer months.
This region was first settled over 6,000 years ago by Yupik Eskimos and Athabascan Indians. By 1880, the village was called Kinuyak. It was later spelled Naknek by the Russian Navy. The Russians built a fort near the village and fur trappers inhabited the area for some time prior to the U.S. purchase of Alaska. The first salmon cannery opened on the Naknek River in 1890.