Southeast Alaska nonresident king salmon limit rises to two fish starting Saturday

Nonresident anglers fishing Southeast Alaska marine waters can keep two king salmon per day starting 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 11, up from the one-fish daily limit in place since July 1, after the Alaska Department of Fish and Game determined harvest is running below the 2026 regional target of 43,600 fish. The annual limit for nonresidents also rises, from two fish to three fish, through Sept. 30, and the 28-inch size threshold stays the same. Any fish already kept this season counts toward that ceiling.

The change is an in-season adjustment to limits set under the March 2026 Southeast Alaska regional king salmon regulations, which established the year's bag, possession, and annual limits under the emergency-order framework that governs the fishery annually. ADF&G said it will continue monitoring harvest and may tighten limits again if the pace accelerates toward the ceiling.

Resident regulations in state waters did not change. Resident anglers fishing within state waters retain a two-fish daily bag limit and no annual limit. In the exclusive economic zone (between 3 and 200 nautical miles from shore), all anglers must follow the nonresident limits regardless of residency.

Several protective measures are unaffected. The closure near Juneau's King Salmon River in Seymour Canal runs through July 31, and special regulations in the Ketchikan area reducing resident bag limits through Aug. 14 continue unchanged. North Behm Canal remains closed year-round to king salmon retention. Special regulations providing additional opportunity for Alaska hatchery-produced king salmon in the Juneau designated saltwater hatchery area, Blind Slough/Wrangell Narrows terminal harvest area near Petersburg, and Herring Bay near Ketchikan also remain in effect. The recording requirement is unchanged: "Immediately upon landing and retaining a king salmon a nonresident must enter the species, date and location on the back of their sport fishing license or on a nontransferable harvest record," ADF&G said. Anglers seeking further information can contact Acting Southeast Alaska Management Coordinator Troy Tydingco at (907) 747-5355.