Yukon River

by Channel 2 News staff Monday, May 3, 2010 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The ice is moving on the Yukon River and so far it's not causing problems for villages along the waterway. The National Weather Service Alaska-Pacific River Forecast Center says ice broke up Friday at Eagle and heavy runs of river ice continue to move pass the community seven miles west of the Canada border. Ice remains intact at Circle, with the breakup front as of Monday morning about 25 miles upstream.

by The Associated Press Friday, June 18, 2010 FAIRBANKS, Alaska -- King salmon are running late in the Yukon River, where the return has failed to meet the demand from Alaska villagers or international treaty obligations with Canada the past three years. State and federal fishery managers say it's too early to tell how this year's chinook run will size up after king salmon started showing up in the Yukon River late last week. The first kings were caught in test nets at the mouth of the river on June 9, and first detected at a sonar counter at Pilot Station, about 120 miles upriver, on June 11. Biologist Steve Hayes with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game says the Yukon king run is about five days late at this point, and officials plan to assess the situation this weekend.

by Channel 2 News staff Thursday, May 13, 2010 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The Senate Appropriations Committee agreed to a request by Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski to include $5 million in a 2010 supplemental appropriations bill for Yukon River salmon fishermen. Murkowski says the economic disaster assistance would help fishermen and communities affected by the failure of the Yukon River chinook salmon fishery. "What we're able to do with this $5 million will be to get direct payments to those that were affected by the salmon fishery failure," Murkowski said.

Alaska State Troopers are investigating the death of a Pilot Station man overnight Tuesday after a Boreal Fisheries tender capsized on the Yukon River near St. Mary's. Troopers in St. Mary's were alerted at about 9:30 a.m. Wednesday that the 32-foot-long tender was overdue at the Boreal Fisheries dock about 10 miles south of St. Mary's on the Yukon. Its sole occupant was 23-year-old skipper Gerald Richardson Minock,  who had last reported in at about 11 p.m. Tuesday. Weather conditions in the area Tuesday night were reported to be windy and rainy.

For 24 years, Pat Sanders has worked at the Eagle Visitors Center for the Yukon Charley Rivers National Preserve. From Eagle, the preserve is 13 miles down the Yukon River. The only way to get there is by boat or by plane. Because of its logistics, Sanders says it is most likely Alaska's least-visited preserve, and that is only part of what makes it unique. "I love it because it's so diverse, you never know what you're going to find except mosquitoes -- and you can guarantee that there's going to be mosquitoes," Sanders said.

by The Associated Press Monday, February 01, 2010 FAIRBANKS, Alaska -- The Alaska Board of Fisheries took a step toward rebuilding the king salmon run on the Yukon River. The board voted Sunday to prohibit subsistence and commercial fishermen from using gillnets with a mesh larger than 7.5 inches, starting in 2011. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports most fishermen on the Yukon use nets with 8.5-inch mesh to specifically target big kings. The goal of the regulation is to allow more of the larger king salmon to spawn.

After a disastrous king salmon return last year, the state of Alaska is putting millions of dollars toward better understanding what's happening to the large fish. As part of the Chinook salmon research initiative, researchers with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game are preparing to implement new research into the state's King salmon runs. Thirty million dollars has been dedicated to the new research over the next five years. Twelve Chinook salmon stalks from the Yukon River to South East Alaska will be monitored throughout their life cycle to better understand what's happening to the fish.

Interior Alaska has all the makings for a severe flood season, according to the National Weather Service. Although Alaska saw less snow this winter than record 2012 falls, in Anchorage there is more snow on the ground compared to the same time last year. The NWS says that's because of record cold April temperatures combined with snowfall -- which River Forecast Center hydrologist Scott Lindsey says are a recipe for potential flooding along waterways like the Yukon River.  "This year right now is shaping up more like 2009," Lindsey said.

by The Associated Press Wednesday, January 27, 2010 FAIRBANKS, Alaska -- The Alaska Board of Fisheries has heard impassioned testimony from fishermen about Yukon River king salmon, the state's largest subsistence fishery. A standing-room-only crowd of about 150 greeted the board Tuesday on the first day of a six-day meeting in Fairbanks. People living on the upper river are arguing for proposals to get more and larger fish on spawning grounds, while those from the lower river want to reject the same proposals.

After a disastrous king salmon return last year, the state of Alaska is putting millions of dollars toward better understanding what's happening to the large fish. As part of the Chinook salmon research initiative, researchers with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game are preparing to implement new research into the state's King salmon runs. Thirty million dollars has been dedicated to the new research over the next five years. Twelve Chinook salmon stalks from the Yukon River to South East Alaska will be monitored throughout their life cycle to better understand what's happening to the fish.

Interior Alaska has all the makings for a severe flood season, according to the National Weather Service. Although Alaska saw less snow this winter than record 2012 falls, in Anchorage there is more snow on the ground compared to the same time last year. The NWS says that's because of record cold April temperatures combined with snowfall -- which River Forecast Center hydrologist Scott Lindsey says are a recipe for potential flooding along waterways like the Yukon River.  "This year right now is shaping up more like 2009," Lindsey said.

Yukon-Charlie Rivers National Preserve, one of Alaska's most remote national parks is entering spring with half the number of wolves it had last fall.  The state's predator control program is being cited as a contributing factor. The Park Service says it isn't unusual for wolf numbers to drop over a winter due to hunting and natural causes, but it says the Alaska Department of Fish and Game's aerial predator control program likely killed the majority of the wolves lost over the winter.

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.

STORY UPDATED AT 10:49 p.m. 3/8/13: Martin Buser checked into Eagle Island shortly before 10 p.m. Friday, holding onto his lead in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. Aliy Zirkle remained in second place checking out of Grayling shortly before 6 p.m. with some shakeup in the remaining top five. Rookie Joar Leifseth Ulsom, who hails from Norway, was listed in third, followed by Nicolas Petit in fourth, and Jessie Royer in fifth who has yet to declare an eight-hour layover. After Eagle Island, teams will approach Kaltag on the Yukon River, which is about 335 miles west of Fairbanks.

On Saturday, individuals at the Alaska Federation of Natives Convention took a vote on resolutions. One of the big topics this year is fishing because of a poor year of salmon numbers which led to fishing restrictions across Alaska. Many people said those restrictions led to a very tough summer for river fisherman and those living off subsistence fishing.  "The cost of fuel and the cost of living is nothing but increasing," said Ana Hoffman, a village representative from the YK Delta, "So the stress on the communities is compacted by the fact that fishing is being restricted.

The body of a Marshall man sought by both Alaska State Troopers and volunteer searchers was found floating in the Yukon River Friday, ending more than a week of efforts to locate him alive. Alaska State Troopers spokesperson Beth Ipsen says a St. Mary's trooper on patrol found 33-year-old Paul Tinker's body about a mile and a half downriver from Marshall. Tinker was last seen on the evening of Aug. 19 headed upriver in a 21-foot Catalina skiff with an unknown destination. Troopers in St. Mary's were informed of his disappearance the next day. An official search for Tinker extended from Aug. 21 through Aug. 25, involving up to 19 boats as well as specialized sonar systems and dragging gear before it was suspended.

Alaska State Troopers have suspended a Yukon River search for a Marshall man reported missing a week ago after he didn't return from a boating trip. According to a Monday AST dispatch, 33-year-old Paul Tinker was last seen at about 11:30 p.m. on Aug. 19, headed upriver in a 21-foot Carolina skiff with an unknown destination. Troopers in St. Mary's were informed of his disappearance at about 10:30 a.m. the next day. “Tinker's boat was located on the riverbank about a quarter mile downstream of Marshall,” troopers wrote.

This summer's troubled king salmon runs have spawned a lot of debate about where the blame lies. Some believe ocean conditions are mainly responsible, while others point to fishing out on the high seas. There's a sign that one community development quota (CDQ) group, the Coastal Villages Region Fund, may have taken some pre-emptive measures to deflect criticism.  When it recently donated about $24,000 in nets to Kuskokwim River fishermen, it required them to sign statements in support of its pollock fishery in order to receive them.  In recent years, pollock fleets in the Bering Sea have come under attack for taking too many king salmon as they haul in their huge nets for pollock.

For 24 years, Pat Sanders has worked at the Eagle Visitors Center for the Yukon Charley Rivers National Preserve. From Eagle, the preserve is 13 miles down the Yukon River. The only way to get there is by boat or by plane. Because of its logistics, Sanders says it is most likely Alaska's least-visited preserve, and that is only part of what makes it unique. "I love it because it's so diverse, you never know what you're going to find except mosquitoes -- and you can guarantee that there's going to be mosquitoes," Sanders said.