Nushagak River
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Alaska Board of Fisheries Bristol Bay Finfish Meeting
Bristol Bay's 2026 sockeye run falls below 50 million for first time since 2014
Bristol Bay caught the fewest sockeye since 2014 and still made more money than usual doing it. Togiak missed its escapement floor by 702 fish.
Latest
September 2026
Bristol Bay's smaller sockeye run pays 21 percent above average
Bristol Bay caught fewer sockeye than usual but got paid far more for them: $264 million, 21% above average. Togiak and Nushagak kings came up short.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Bristol Bay's Nushagak opened late this year to protect its king salmon
Bristol Bay's Nushagak District opened weeks late this season to protect its struggling king salmon, delaying the fleet's access to the sockeye run.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
August 2026
Sockeye are running so strong in Bristol Bay that anglers can now keep twice as many
Sockeye are running so strong in Bristol Bay's Wood River and Nushagak drainages that the state has doubled the daily bag limit to 10 fish through year's end.
by Bill AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
July 2026
Nushagak kings close on the calendar, not on a recovery
Nushagak-Mulchatna kings close Friday, release-only to the end. The restrictions lift on the calendar even though projected passage is less than half the goal.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Bristol Bay tightens the rules on its king salmon again
Bristol Bay's kings keep sliding, so the rules keep tightening: fewer big fish on the Naknek, no bait on the Nushagak, and log every keeper in ink.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Bristol Bay is hauling in millions of sockeye — and it's still a down year
Bristol Bay has already landed 26+ million sockeye — a staggering haul that's somehow still a down year, running about a quarter below its 10-year average.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Alaska Wildlife Troopers issue 13 citations across Bristol Bay in 10-day enforcement push
Alaska Wildlife Troopers issued 13 citations to commercial fishers in Bristol Bay's Egegik and Nushagak districts between June 26 and July 1 for closed-period and closed-waters violations.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Nushagak king salmon run on pace for near-record low season
Nushagak king salmon run is on pace for one of its weakest seasons since 1980, triggering a subsistence closure and forcing commercial fishermen to sell or donate all kings starting July 12.
by Bill AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
More from Nushagak River
June 2026
Bristol Bay's sockeye season opens as Nushagak kings raise concern
Bristol Bay's sockeye season is open and the fish are pouring in — a roughly 45-million run. The shadow: depleted Nushagak kings swim the same waters as the nets.
by Bill AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
A storied Alaska king run falls short again — the Nushagak goes catch-and-release Sunday
The Nushagak, one of Alaska's great king runs, is tracking short again — so starting Sunday, sport anglers have to release every king through July 31.
by Bill AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
On one of the world's great king rivers, a 'poor' rating is partly the plan
Fish go bye bye? Oh no0ooo
by Bill AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Bristol Bay fishery opens under old rules as new regs stall in review
Bristol Bay's commercial salmon season opened June 1 under old rules while new regulations adopted in January remain stalled in legal review.
by Bill AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read
About Nushagak River
The Nushagak River, often called the Nushagak, is a river in the Bristol Bay region of southwest Alaska. It feeds the Nushagak District, one of the commercial fishing districts of the Bristol Bay salmon fishery, and flows past Dillingham, Portage Creek, Koliganek and New Stuyahok.
The river carries large sockeye runs alongside its Nushagak-Mulchatna king salmon, one of the state's best known king runs. Because both species swim the same waters as the nets, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game manages the district with late openings, subsistence and sport restrictions, catch-and-release rules and bait bans when kings fall short of their goals.
Sport bag limits on sockeye in the Nushagak and Wood River drainages rise when the run is strong. Alaska Wildlife Troopers patrol the district and cite commercial fishers for fishing closed waters or during closed periods.