Weak fall run closes Yukon River chum fishing July 22

A projected fall chum run too weak to meet U.S.-Canada treaty requirements is closing chum salmon fishing across nearly all of the Yukon River — for subsistence and sport harvesters alike.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game is closing sport fishing for chum in state waters throughout the Yukon River drainage from July 22 through the end of the year, with the Tanana River drainage the lone exception. Catch-and-release won't be allowed either: anglers fishing for other species who hook a chum must release it in the water, without lifting it out.

The closure turns on a border. Roughly 15 to 20 percent of the Yukon's fall chum spawn in Canada, and the Yukon River Salmon Agreement under the Pacific Salmon Treaty requires a minimum number to cross. This year's run isn't expected to reach that floor. Because fall chum begin entering the lower river in mid-to-late July, the state is acting now, restricting subsistence and sport harvest alike to protect spawning fish and keep enough moving upriver.

The department says it may ease the limits if in-season counts show escapement goals within reach and subsistence needs met. Anglers should also check federal rules, which the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service sets separately for federal waters of the Yukon.