The upper Stillaguamish and Sauk valleys on the Sauk, Suiattle, and White Chuck rivers were historically inhabited by various Native American Coast Salish groups, including the Stillaguamish, the Sauk-Suiattle, and the Upper Skagit. The Sauk-Suiattle maintained a village site and burial ground near modern-day Darrington, while the Skagits used the plain between the Stillaguamish and Sauk rivers as a portage for overland transport of canoes. The portage, named or , was also used as a transiting point for travelers from Eastern Washington on their way to and from the Puget Sound coast.