Two Washington men cited for fishing Bristol Bay while it was closed in Naknek

Alaska Wildlife Troopers cited two Washington men on July 15 for commercial fishing the Naknek District during a closed period — a 67-year-old from Ellensburg and a 21-year-old from Mount Vernon, 46 years apart in age and, according to the citations, working the same closed water.

Closed periods are the spine of Bristol Bay management. The state opens and shuts the districts through the season to make sure enough salmon get upriver to spawn, and in a fishery this short and this valuable, fishing the closed hours is the violation troopers watch hardest for.

Each man picked up three more counts alongside it: an improper dual-permit marking on the vessel, employing an unlicensed crewmember, and fishing without a crewmember license himself.

Both are due in Naknek District Court on Aug. 6, with bail on the minor offenses set at $250. The charges are accusations, and both men are presumed innocent.