King Salmon

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game decided late Wednesday to allow Southwest Alaska subsistence fishermen to fish for chum and sockeye salmon on the lower Kuskokwim River starting Friday, but kept a ban on fishing for king salmon in place through the end of the month. Fishermen in the Bethel area have been very concerned in recent weeks, as a delay in the king salmon run has prompted state and federal action to protect the fish from overfishing. “We have some early indications, we're at an early point in the run, but we have early indications that we're looking at low abundance of Chinook (salmon)

Numerous boats sitting in dry storage in Naknek are a quiet precursor to the busy sockeye salmon fishing season that transforms this community. The population increases tenfold in the summer to support the most profitable commercial sockeye fishery in the world. While other areas of the state have seen commercial fishing hurt by low king salmon returns, Bristol Bay remains a strong economic engine. The mayor of the Bristol Bay Borough, Daniel O'Hara, says fishing's importance to the region is like oil's importance to the State of Alaska.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game has ordered an emergency closure to king salmon fishing in the Little Susitna River, from Cook Inlet to the Parks Highway Bridge. The order goes into effect at 11 p.m. Friday, June 17, and will last through 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, July 13. Anglers are prohibited from sport fishing for king salmon, including catch-and-release. King salmon may not be retained or possessed and those accidentally caught while fishing for other species must be released immediately without being removed from the water.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game will be closing the Anchor River to sport fishing from Wednesday, June 15, through Thursday, June 30. The Department says the closure is to protect king salmon returning to the river, and that as of June 12, only 1,405 king salmon had made escapement. The Department’s escapement goal is 3,800-10,000 king salmon, 75 percent of which usually pass through the weir by June 12.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced 2012's Southeast Chinook salmon harvest quota on March 29. Under the pacific salmon treaty, Fish and Game says the Chinook salmon all-gear harvest quota is 266,800 fish. The 2012 quota is a lower than last year's quota of 294,800 fish. The Chinook technical committee of the pacific salmon commission determines the annual all-gear quotas for Southeast Alaska. Fish and Game says the number is based on the forecast of aggregate abundance of Pacific Coast Chinook salmon stocks.

Restrictions on king salmon fishing on the Kenai River go into effect Friday, according to the AK Department of Fish & Game. State officials say in an effort to meet early-run king salmon minimum escapement numbers, the department is restricting the sport fishery to catch-and-release/trophy king salmon fishing only beginning Friday, June 15. In a press release, Fish and Game advised anglers on the Kenai River that the department is...

The Department of Fish and Game announced that the Kenai River will open to catch-and-release and limited harvest of king salmon starting at 12:01 a.m. Saturday, June 12. The Kenai River has recently been closed to king salmon fishing due to a low run. Anglers will be allowed to harvest kings less than 20 inches in length and greater than 55 inches in length in some areas. Fish in between 20 and 55 inches in length must be released immediately. Regulations as set by Fish and Game are: From June 12-30, from the mouth of the Kenai River to the Soldotna Bridge, king salmon greater than 20 or less than 55 inches may not be possessed, retained or removed from the water, and must be released immediately.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced Thursday that it will be closing the Kenai River to early-run king salmon fishing, and will close the Kasilof River for naturally-produced kings. The department says the early run in the Kenai is currently the lowest on record. It says only an estimated 739 king salmon have passed through the Kenai River sonar station, well below the historical average of 3,114 by June 2. The department says that closures on the Kenai River will result in increased fishing activity on the Kasilof River, which it says also is shaping up for a lower-than-usual run. Fish and Game is prohibiting retention of naturally-produced king salmon on the Kasilof River.

by Channel 2 News staff Sunday, January 24, 2010 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The Alaska Board of Fisheries will be in Fairbanks this week to talk about low Yukon River king salmon runs. Last week, the federal government declared the 2008 and 2009 Yukon king salmon runs disasters. The Tanana Chiefs Conference in Fairbanks says it hopes conservation efforts will be put in place. Many fishermen in villages along the Yukon and Tanana rivers say they have noticed a decrease in not only the size of the Yukon king salmon runs, but also in the size of the fish themselves.

Several lower Cook Inlet streams, as well as offshore fishing in some areas of the inlet, will fall under sport-fishing bans and bait restrictions effective Sunday, as state officials continue to respond to shortages in king salmon runs statewide. According to a Monday emergency order from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the Anchor and Ninilchik rivers will close to sport fishing effective from 12:01 a.m. Sunday, July 1 through 11:59 p.m. July 15. The sport fishing ban will be followed by a ban on using bait and multiple hooks on the rivers, set to take effect from 12:01 a.m. July 16 through 11:59 p.m. July 31. A separate ban on bait and multiple hooks will affect Deep and Stariski creeks throughout the month of July.