The first of 60 reindeer began arriving in Port Heiden last week after a several month delay.
Adrianne Christiansen is the business development director for the Native Village of Port Heiden which has been working to reinstate a long-dormant tradition of reindeer herding. She said the reindeer began arriving Friday via charter plane from Stebbins/St. Michael’s.
“And we are really excited to re-establish reindeer herding in Port Heiden,” says Christiansen.
It’s going to be a big community learning experience, says Christiansen. For the next three months, an experienced herder will stay in Port Heiden to teach everyone about the reindeer.
“We have a pen built for them, and we have a traditional reindeer herder down to train our young people to learn how to herd reindeer … so they’ll be in the pen until we all learn how to herd the reindeer.”
Christiansen says about 100 community members, including 30 school-age children, will be trained.
Once the herd is well-established in the area, the community plans to harvest some for food. Christiansen says that may be four or five years down the road.