Silvers are slow in Resurrection Bay, but the best coho fishing is just outside it

Anglers working Resurrection Bay for silvers in late August are finding slow going, with only a handful of coho past the Bear Creek weir so far this season. Fish and Game's latest report for the Resurrection River says coho fishing has been slow, but that more fish should keep moving in over the coming weeks.

A weak finish has happened before. In 2024, just 693 coho came through the weir by mid-October, short of what the hatchery program needed for eggs. But that count came seven weeks later in the run than this year's, and the department has not called this year's return inadequate.

Bear Creek Weir, run by the Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association, counts returning adults and supplies eggs for the hatchery program that helps stock Resurrection Bay's coho. By policy, the bay's coho and chinook are reserved for sport fishing, and Seward's charter fleet and beach anglers depend on that return, so slow August fishing cuts into trips and the spending that follows. Researchers studying Gulf of Alaska salmon caution that run timing has shifted with ocean conditions, so a slow August does not guarantee a later peak.

The best coho fishing remains outside the bay toward Montague Island, with schools around Harris Bay; fish entering Resurrection Bay are bound for Seward Lagoon or Bear Lake. Halibut fishing is fair outside the bay, and anglers report strong catch rates on black rockfish near the bay entrance and the Chiswell Islands, where an emergency order caps rockfish at three a day and six in possession through Sept. 15.

The Resurrection River up to Nash Road is open to all salmon except kings, with unbaited single-hook artificial lures or flies only and no snagging. Dolly Varden are showing in Seward-area creeks behind spawning salmon, taking egg imitations and beads.