Tanana River chum salmon sport fishery reopens as run exceeds forecast

Sport anglers in the Tanana River drainage can keep chum salmon again as of Wednesday, after the Alaska Department of Fish and Game rescinded its earlier closure and set a bag and possession limit of three salmon other than king salmon, with no size limit, through Dec. 31.

The department cited a summer chum run larger than anticipated and forecast to be well within the escapement goal. That is a reversal from the preseason picture: ADF&G's February 2026 Yukon River Salmon Fisheries Outlook had projected a drainagewide summer chum run of 345,600 fish, with a range of 160,000 to 580,000, and warned that fishing would likely remain closed all season. The rest of the Yukon River drainage, excluding the Tanana, was closed to chum sport fishing by emergency order on June 21.

Interior sport anglers can again keep three chum, but the broader Yukon drainage continues to face weak returns and management restrictions. ADF&G estimated 2024 Yukon drainage fall chum escapement at roughly 180,000 fish, well below the 300,000 to 600,000 sustainable escapement goal. The department's fall chum management plan requires closing all directed chum fisheries when projected runs fall below 300,000.

Tanana Chiefs Conference, which praised a 2022 Board of Fisheries action reducing interception fishing by about 30 percent, has said stronger conservation measures are needed to protect Yukon and Tanana salmon-dependent communities.

One closure that has not changed: king salmon sport fishing in the Tanana River drainage remains closed through Sept. 30, 2026.