Russian River Sanctuary opens Thursday as sockeye goal met

The Russian River Sanctuary Area opens early for sport fishing at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, June 18, and will remain open through Tuesday, July 14, after the Alaska Department of Fish and Game projected that the early-run sockeye escapement goal will be met.

Emergency Order 2-RS-1-26-26, issued by Area Management Biologist Phillip Stacey, cites weir data showing 7,512 sockeye have passed the Russian River weir through June 16 as the basis for the decision. The weir was installed June 3. "Based on projections of escapement, ADF&G now estimates that the biological escapement goal for sockeye salmon will be achieved. Therefore ADF&G is announcing an early opening to sport fishing in the Russian River Sanctuary Area," the emergency order states.

Trout fishing on the Russian River has been good ahead of the opening, with beads, small flesh flies, nymphs, epoxy fry, and dry flies producing. ADF&G is directing anglers to review the full emergency order and its accompanying map in their entirety before heading out; the sanctuary area carries specific boundary rules.

The opening comes amid a broader set of Northern Kenai management actions. Separate emergency orders have closed the Kenai River to king salmon fishing: the early-run fishery through June 19 and the late-run fishery from June 20 through August 15, with no king salmon fishing, including catch-and-release, allowed during those periods. On the Kasilof River, king salmon regulations remain in effect through August 15, limiting harvest to hatchery fish with clipped adipose fins through June 30 and requiring immediate release of wild fish.

Anglers can track daily weir counts at the ADF&G fish counts page. For additional information, contact Stacey at the Soldotna ADF&G office: 907-262-9368 or [email protected].