King Salmon

For years, poor king salmon returns have forced the closures of subsistence, commercial and sport fishing across the state, with many fishermen blaming bycatch as the reason for the poor runs. Along the Yukon River, 68-year-old Nick Tucker of Emmonak, says king salmon has drastically declined since 2007, and fears the 2013 season could be the worst return yet. “If there are any evidence that any bycatch is being caught,” said Tucker.  “I think we should do everything we can to put a stop to that, particularly when we cannot fish our own.” Commercial fishermen claim there is no way to completely avoid catching kings while fishing for reds.  One Seattle-based organization wants to make sure the valuable fish doesn't go to waste.

As Pen Air pulls its service from the village of King Salmon, Grant Aviation makes plans to fill the void. The two airlines are working closely together to ensure a smooth transition for the community which serves as a transportation hub for the Bristol Bay region. The airlines plan to open its King Salmon base on October 1st of this year, but will begin daily commuter services starting on Wednesday, August 8th. Austin Engebretson, the Director of Operations for Grant Aviation, says their service will be similar to the service provided by their predecessor.

The fish wars on the Kenai Peninsula rage on, with the sport fishing industry taking steps to prevent more commercial fishing in August. The Alaska Board of Fisheries has called another emergency meeting on Wednesday morning, to hear several Cook Inlet proposals. One proposal from the Kenai River Sportfishing Association asks the board to shut down the East Side setnetter fishery through the middle of August. The setnetters have had only one commercial opening this season, to conserve king salmon which are running at some of the lowest numbers ever.

Collapsing king salmon runs have been causing some Kenai Peninsula businesses, including guide services, bed-and-breakfasts and restaurants, to suffer through their worst season in decades. While the effects of the king collapse have been felt statewide, on the Kenai there has been one saving grace: fellow Alaskans, dipnetters who have been driving down to the peninsula from places like Anchorage and the Mat-Su Valley. They're being drawn to the Kenai by an excellent sockeye salmon run. Even though king salmon runs have collapsed, the sockeyes' return is at near-record levels.

Kenai and Kasilof River king salmon fishing will close Thursday, with closures also affecting parts of Cook Inlet, in the latest and most drastic example of numerous fishing restrictions imposed by state officials this year to protect low salmon runs. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game says the Kenai River closure, which will go into effect with the others at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, was triggered by projections that show fewer than a threshold number of 17,800 kings will escape the fishery this year.

Kings vs. sockeyes. It's a debate that continued on the Kenai River, as commercial fishing got underway on Monday with some of the worst king salmon numbers on record.  The Upper Cook Inlet driftnet fleet and setnetters on the east end of the Inlet had twelve hours of commercial fishing on Monday, capitalizing on a strong pulse of sockeye salmon. Fish and game biologists say between 200,000 to 250,000 sockeyes entered the river over the past few days, compared to the kings, which still are barely trickling in.    Pat Shields, a state biologist in Soldotna, says the kings number only in the hundreds, so it's like trying to keep track of small pieces of straw while dealing with big bales of hay.      “And I guess that analogy works to point out to people that it is a very serious challenge to try to accurately estimate the number of king salmon swimming up the Kenai River, when they're mixed in with hundreds of thousands of sockeye,” said Shields.

State biologists are imposing new restrictions on Chignik and Ninilchik River king salmon fishing set to take effect over the next few days, and extending an existing restriction on retaining kings caught in much of Cook Inlet as low salmon runs continue statewide. An Alaska Department of Fish and Game order for the Chignik River sport fishery bars retaining kings 20 inches and over effective Sunday, restricting fishing to catch-and-release using single unbaited hooks. Bag and possession limits for kings under 20 inches remain at 10 each, with no annual limit.

Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, is calling on Gov. Sean Parnell, R-Alaska, to declare a fisheries disaster in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, where king salmon runs are some of the weakest on record.  In a letter to the governor, Begich said the crisis has been compounded by high energy prices and the rising costs of goods.  “The food security of Alaska's rural citizens is of the utmost importance and action is needed now,” Begich wrote....

State officials restored king salmon bag and possession limits in the Nushagak-Mulchatna River drainage Friday, as federal authorities extended the subsistence fishing schedule for the Copper River's Chitina subdistrict. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game's restoration, effective Saturday, brings the Nushagak-Mulchatna bag and possession limits from one fish per day to two fish per day, one of which may be 28 inches or greater in length. Limits for king salmon less than 20 inches long remain at five per day and five in possession.

State biologists have closed the English Bay River drainage and Port Graham subdistrict to sport fishing for sockeye salmon effective Wednesday, in conjunction with an existing subsistence closure of the fishery. Changes have also been made to previous king salmon restrictions in the Nushagak-Mulchatna River drainage. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game says the English Bay River closure, which will be in effect from 12:01 a.m. on Independence Day through the end of the month, is necessary after only 1,909 sockeyes had passed through the English Bay weir as of July 1. The escapement goal for the region is 4,018 sockeyes, with 66 percent of the run already complete by July 1 according to historic run timing.