Yakutat set gillnet fishery reopens Sept. 27 with Situk kings still off-limits

Yakutat set gillnetters get another opening, still no Chinook to keep

Yakutat set gillnetters get another opening at 12:01 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 27, but they still cannot keep Chinook of any size from the Situk River fishery, whether for sale or personal use.

The windows run through noon Wednesday, Sept. 30, in the East Alsek, Alsek, Akwe and Dangerous rivers, and through noon Thursday, Oct. 1, in Yakutat Bay, the Situk-Ahrnklin Inlet and the Manby Shore-Outside Waters. The Yakataga District opens at 9 a.m. Sunday. The Lost River remains closed until further notice, with closure lines set near the Situk River mouth.

Any king salmon found dead must have its dorsal fin removed, be recorded as "86-Donated" on a fish ticket, and go to a buyer or the Alaska Department of Fish and Game office in Yakutat for distribution to people in need. Dual permits are allowed in the Situk-Ahrnklin Inlet and in Yakutat Bay north of a line from Point Manby to Ocean Cape; permit holders must notify the Yakutat office when they start and stop fishing.

The 2026 Yakutat management plan forecasts 900 large Situk Chinook against a biological escapement goal of 450 to 1,050 fish. Even so, the Situk River commercial set gillnet fishery remains closed to Chinook retention, while other species stay open to harvest. This opening, covering only the Yakutat notice, is Emergency Order 1Y2126.