ADF&G closes Eagle River to king salmon fishing

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game closed sport fishing for king salmon in the Eagle River drainage effective May 1 to protect returning kings and increase future fishing opportunities. The closure runs through July 13.

The order prohibits targeting king salmon in Eagle River and requires that any kings caught incidentally remain in the water and be released immediately. Sport fishing for other species remains open, but all gear in Eagle River between the Route Bravo Bridge and the regulatory marker at mile 7.4 Eagle River Road is limited to one unbaited, single-hook artificial lure with a hook gap of half an inch or less.

Pattern of king closures

The Eagle River closure is the latest in a series of emergency restrictions on king salmon fishing across Southcentral Alaska drainages. ADF&G has issued repeated emergency closures on the Kenai River and Mat-Su drainages in recent years, and Eagle River itself has been closed under emergency order before.

King salmon runs have declined across much of Alaska over the past decade, prompting conservation measures in both sport and commercial fisheries. The Yukon River king run collapsed in the early 2020s, leading to subsistence-only restrictions that remain in place. Cook Inlet drainages have seen similar pressure, with ADF&G using emergency order authority to make rapid in-season changes when run strength falls short of projections.

Elsewhere in the Anchorage area, king salmon fishing is picking up on Ship Creek, with a few fish caught each tide cycle.