Chitina
RSSState expects seismic retrofit of Tanana River Bridge at Big Delta to start in mid-October
Alaska is the most seismically active state, and DOT says earthquake work on the Big Delta bridge starts this month. Seven more bridges are in line.

Snow and freezing rain advisories cover Copper Valley and McCarthy into Sunday morning
Winter weather advisories cover Copper Valley and McCarthy through Sunday morning, with 2 to 4 inches of snow and freezing rain expected to make travel very difficult.

Chitina dip net permit holders must report online by Oct. 15
Chitina dipnetters: report your 2026 harvest online by Oct. 15, even if you got skunked. Miss it, and your whole household sits out next season.

McCarthy meeting to take up Copper River proposals on salmon eligibility and dip net limits
A local subsistence panel meets Oct. 9 in McCarthy on proposals to add McCarthy Road residents to a salmon fishery and ban dip nets near Copper River streams.

Copper River commercial salmon season closes Oct. 13 after weak sockeye and strong coho runs
Copper River's commercial salmon season ends Oct. 13. Sockeye came in at a third of forecast, kings hit an eight-year low, and coho decided to make up for it.

Copper River coho periods stretch to 36 hours next week
Copper River gillnetters get 36-hour openings Monday and Thursday, up from 24-hour periods, after a delta survey counted 40,780 coho above the expected range, following a difficult summer.

Three of 20 Alaska aviation accidents since July 19 were fatal
Twenty aircraft have crashed in Alaska in eight weeks. Three were fatal. The state's accident rate runs more than twice the national average.

Federal board extends FM1106 subsistence moose hunt by two days
Federal officials added two days to a Copper Basin moose hunt and closed 1,300 square miles of Interior river corridors to outside hunters. One group objects.

Copper River dipnet and subsistence fishing runs through Sept. 30
Copper River dipnetters have until Sept. 30 to fish, closing out a below-average sockeye year — and the river gauge is down, so check conditions first.

When the Memphis courthouse needs work, the government calls Anchorage
An Anchorage company owned by a Copper River village corporation has taken five federal orders at one Memphis courthouse this year, worth about $514,000.

Federal grant of $3.6 million funds seismic retrofits on eight Interior Alaska bridges
Alaska has $3.64 million in federal money to earthquake-proof eight bridges its own engineers priced at somewhere between $5 million and $10 million.

A tiny Copper River village corporation is quietly renovating federal courthouses across Tennessee
A company owned by tiny Chitina Native Corporation, from a Copper River dipnetting town of about 260 shareholders, is racking up federal courthouse renovation jobs across Tennessee.

A Copper River village corporation is fixing federal buildings in Tennessee
A company owned by 260 shareholders from a Copper River village is painting judges' chambers in Memphis and fixing a fire pump in Jackson, Tennessee.

King salmon fishing is over for the year in the Upper Copper River drainages
King salmon fishing in the Upper Copper River drainages is done for 2026. Permit holders must report online by Aug. 31 even if they never fished.

Four dipnet openings left at Chitina in August
Chitina dipnetters have four 48-hour openings left in August and can't keep any kings, after a below-average sockeye run and a weak Copper River king return.

Chitina dipnetters can keep sockeye but must release every king
Chitina dipnetters can catch sockeye but must release all kings this season, as weak Copper River runs raise an old question: which fishery fishes less first?

Chitina's dipnet window shrinks to 48 hours as sockeye falter
Chitina dipnetters get 48 hours next weekend, half the window two weeks ago, after last week's sockeye count came in 26,000 fish short.

Wrangell-St. Elias subsistence permits open July 20 for Units 11 and 12
Subsistence permits for moose, goat, caribou, and sheep in Wrangell-St. Elias opened July 20 at Copper Center and Slana through September 20 for federally qualified rural Alaska residents.

Kennicott River rising after Hidden Creek Lake drains; crest expected Monday
Hidden Creek Lake is draining into the Kennicott River near McCarthy, expected to crest Monday with fast-moving water and debris. • Dangerous conditions extend downstream to the Chitina and Copper Rivers, putting boaters and subsistence fishermen at risk. • This annual glacial flood is called a jökulhlaup; NWS warns against parking, camping, or crossing near riverbanks.

Copper River dip netters stranded on sandbar near Chitina, self-rescue before troopers arrive
Dip netters stranded on a Copper River sandbar near Chitina self-rescued Friday before troopers arrived.

Copper River king salmon closed to sport fishing; Chitina dipnetters barred from keeping kings all season
Alaska closed Upper Copper River king salmon sport fishing and barred Chitina dipnetters from keeping any kings this season due to a weak forecast of 33,000 fish, 27% below the 10-year average.

Chitina dipnet fishery opens full 168 hours July 20–26 as salmon surplus builds
The Chitina dipnet fishery opens for a full week starting July 20 as salmon counts finally hit targets. King salmon remain off-limits.

Chitina dip net fishery cut to 96 hours as Copper River salmon run behind
Alaska Fish and Game cut the Chitina dip net season to 96 hours next week because the Copper River salmon run is running 30,600 fish behind schedule and sockeye escapement goals are at risk.

Three cited at Chitina dipnet fishery over July 4 weekend; one faces mandatory court date
Three fishers cited at Chitina dipnet fishery during July 4 weekend opening; one Fairbanks man faces mandatory court for retaining a king salmon in violation of emergency order.

Five dipnetters cited at Chitina in four days, three headed to court
Troopers cited five dipnetters at Chitina in four days, three now court-bound — for keeping kings when barred or fishing when it was closed. Check before you drive out.

The Copper River's sockeye run just hit a 40-year low
The Copper River is running its worst sockeye return in 40 years — so bad Alaska closed the popular Chitina dipnet fishery, even with no commercial boats fishing the river.

A fisherman feared lost, as Bristol Bay's run shows strain
A crew member is feared dead after going overboard near Egegik Bay, as record-low sockeye counts force fishery closures and troopers cite fishermen across Bristol Bay.

Weak Copper River runs bring king closures and a Chitina dipnet shutdown
Copper River salmon are running weak, so kings are now off-limits in Upper Copper sport fishing from July 6, and the Chitina dipnet closes July 6–12.

Chitina opens full 168-hour dipnet week starting Monday, even as counts run behind projection
Chitina dipnet fishery opens for a full week starting Monday, June 15, despite sonar counts running about 5,600 salmon below projection for early June.

Alaska opens Chitina dipnet fishery despite Copper River run 55% low
Alaska opened the Chitina dipnet fishery for 60 hours starting Friday despite the Copper River salmon run running 55 percent below target for early June, with subsistence fishers already reporting low catches upstream.

Chitina dipnet fishery opens Friday for 60 hours
Alaska Fish and Game cut the Chitina dipnet salmon opening to 60 hours this weekend after sonar counts fell 30,412 salmon short of forecast, triggering an automatic reduction under state management rules.

Chitina dipnet fishery tentatively set for June 10; low rivers and ice flows could delay opening
Alaska Department of Fish and Game tentatively set the Chitina Personal Use dipnet fishery to open June 10, but low river levels and ice flows from Miles Lake could delay the opening pending sonar salmon counts in early June.

Ice Flows Delay Miles Lake Sonar, Chitina Dipnet Season in Limbo
Ice flows are delaying Miles Lake sonar equipment, pushing the Chitina dipnet season opening to a tentative June 10 noon start pending sonar data on salmon passage.

Late breakup delays Chitina dipnet season; salmon run expected late
Chitina dipnet season tentatively opens June 10, delayed by late ice breakup and expected late salmon passage at Miles Lake sonar.
McCarthy Road opens for season with difficult conditions, 35 mph advisory
McCarthy Road opened May 8 for the season with a 35 mph advisory due to soft shoulders, potholes, and rough conditions on the 60-mile gravel route to McCarthy and Kennicott.