ADF&G closes mountain goat hunting in part of Unit 5A near Yakutat

The area west of Harlequin Lake and Yakutat Glacier closes to RG170 registration permit holders at 11:59 p.m. Friday, July 31, under an emergency order from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

Emergency Order R1-2-26 closes the mountain goat season in the portion of Unit 5A bounded by the west shore of Harlequin Lake and the western edge of Yakutat Glacier, running west to Yakutat Bay and Disenchantment Bay and south of Russell and Nunatak Fjords. The Nunatak Bench area remains closed to mountain goat hunting.

The survey record runs like this: aerial surveys between Harlequin Lake and Hubbard Glacier counted 122 goats in 2006, then 66, 57, 48, 12 in 2010 and 38 in 2011. A joint department and U.S. Forest Service fixed-wing survey found 19 goats in September 2016 and 46 in August 2019. On Sept. 23, 2025, the Yakutat Tlingit Tribe flew the area in an A-Star helicopter and counted 75 goats, 66 adults and nine kids.

That 2025 count is the highest in nearly two decades, and the department is declining to treat it as recovery; helicopter observations are not directly comparable to the earlier fixed-wing work. "Harvest of goats in this area could hinder the recovery of this population," the department said.

What stays open

Here is what does not change: the rest of Unit 5A, including the Barbazon Range east of Harlequin Lake and Yakutat Glacier, remains open under existing regulations. Questions go to Koch at 907-465-4266.