Kodiak subsistence closed waters expand at Saltery Creek on Thursday

Sockeye Shortfall Prompts Closure at Saltery Creek

Kodiak subsistence fishers lose their extra room at Saltery Creek at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, when the Alaska Department of Fish and Game restores the normal closed waters described in regulation to conserve a sockeye run that isn't showing up.

Only 7,454 sockeye had passed the Saltery River weir through July 26, the department said. Historically about 58 percent of the escapement clears the weir by that date. ADF&G does not project the escapement goal of 15,000 to 35,000 fish will be met. The Saltery run averages about 37,000 fish, according to the department's Kodiak freshwater fishing publication.

The restriction lands on a system Kodiak households already lean on. In its January 2025 analysis of a Buskin River salmon proposal, the Federal Subsistence Board cited the Kodiak/Aleutians Regional Advisory Council's finding that "users struggle to meet their harvest needs" when the Buskin is closed, and must harvest at areas farther away including Saltery Creek and Ugak Bay. The Buskin is closed to sockeye through Dec. 31.

The Saltery change, under Emergency Order #4-FS-K-Sub-04-26, holds until further notice. Kodiak's commercial seine districts remain on scheduled openings.