Bristol Bay's 2026 sockeye run falls below 50 million for first time since 2014

Bristol Bay fishermen caught fewer sockeye this summer and made more money. The run came in at 45.7 million fish, the first under 50 million since 2014, and the fleet's catch was worth $264 million, well above the 20-year average of $207.8 million.

The price did the work. Sockeye brought $1.72 a pound on an average fish of five pounds. The commercial harvest of 30.1 million came in 7 percent under the preseason forecast, and 15.6 million fish made it upriver to spawn. Last year the bay saw a 56.7 million run, harvested 41.2 million and earned $215.3 million.

The districts did not fare alike. Ugashik came in 37 percent above forecast and Egegik 26 percent above, while Nushagak fell 16 percent short and Togiak 43 percent. Togiak was the only system to miss the bottom of its escapement goal, and it missed by 702 fish: 119,298 against a floor of 120,000.

Even a thin year here is a fat one by history. Fish and Game's Cole Weaver told the Board of Fisheries in January that recent years have shown much higher sockeye abundance than anything observed historically. A preliminary forecast puts next summer's run at 44.2 million.

The other species were lean. Chum harvest ran 53 percent below its 20-year average and coho 40 percent below. The Chinook harvest of 10,700 was the highest since 2019, though the department now counts removals from processor production reports as well as fish tickets after years of underreporting, and cautions against comparing the number to past seasons. On the Nushagak, the Chinook index came in at 36,339, below an escapement goal range of 55,000 to 120,000.