Breakup & Freeze-up
RSSBreakup and freeze-up in Alaska is the seasonal cycle of river ice forming each fall and breaking apart each spring. It brings ice jams, flooding and road washouts to rivers such as the Kuskokwim, Yukon, Susitna and Koyukuk, including the Dalton Highway.
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August 2026
Juneau lifts its Suicide Basin flood evacuation
Juneau's Suicide Basin flood threat is over — the command reopened evacuated areas after the Mendenhall River crested at 14.7 feet, below the forecast.
by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago1 min read
July 2026
Talkeetna's erosion fight reaches a new stage: buying people off the riverbank
Talkeetna's erosion fight has reached buyout territory: the borough wants federal money to pay people off the riverbank, if the state covers the match.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Anchorage Assembly asked to add $75K to Rabbit Creek road contract after heavy breakup damage
Anchorage Assembly will vote July 7 on adding $75,000 to a Rabbit Creek road maintenance contract after this winter's heavy breakup damaged roads faster than expected.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
A landslide has closed the Dalton Highway, the main road to the North Slope
A rain-triggered landslide closed the Dalton Highway north of Coldfoot on Monday — blocking the main road to the North Slope and the freight bound for the oil fields.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
June 2026
If you're camped on a Susitna gravel bar this week, watch the river
Up to 3 inches of rain is about to hit the Susitna Valley, and the gravel bars everyone camps on are exactly what floods first. Maybe move the tent.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
High Water Threatens Alaska's Only Road North
A rain-fed surge down the Koyukuk could wash out the Dalton Highway — the lone road feeding the North Slope oil fields — the same way 2015's flooding shut it for 28 days.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Sag River nears bankfull, threatening Dalton Highway washout
Sagavanirktok River near bankfull on North Slope threatens Dalton Highway washouts between mileposts 310 and 340 through Thursday afternoon, with ice-blocked culverts posing particular risk to the primary road serving oil fields and communities.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Flood Watch: Koyukuk rises threaten Coldfoot, Wiseman, Bettles
National Weather Service issued a Flood Watch through Tuesday evening for the Upper Koyukuk Valley after heavy rain and snowmelt pushed steep water rises toward Wiseman, Coldfoot, and Bettles along the Dalton Highway.
by Maggie AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read
More from Breakup & Freeze-up
North Slope rivers expected to rise as snowmelt, rain combine
It's finally spring in the arctic
by Maggie AlaskaNews5mo ago1 min read
Yukon River sport fishing closed for kings and chums through 2026 as seven-year rebuilding effort continues
Alaska closed all sport fishing for king and chum salmon in the Yukon River drainage through 2026 under emergency orders due to weak run forecasts and a U.S.-Canada treaty requiring seven years of rebuilding closures.
by Bill AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read
Bristol Bay's ice is starting to break — and it's about to set off a cascade of fish and fishermen
Lake Aleknagik's ice is breaking in southwest Alaska, triggering young salmon migration and opening the first fishing window of the season at stream outlets where trout and char gather to feed.
by Bill AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read
May 2026
Bristol Bay lakes still ice-covered as May ends, compressing early-season fishing window
Bristol Bay lakes remain ice-covered as of late May, delaying salmon fishing until mid-June on the Naknek and late June on the Alagnak, though resident fish like rainbow trout are biting well where access exists.
by Bill AlaskaNews5mo ago1 min read
Dunleavy declares disaster for Interior spring flooding
Governor Dunleavy declared a disaster for spring flooding in Interior Alaska, activating state aid programs. Residents can register for assistance through July 11.
by Maggie AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read
Ice Jam Near Kalskag Threatens Flooding Along Lower Kuskokwim River
An ice jam near Kalskag, 90 miles upriver from Bethel, threatens flooding along the lower Kuskokwim River through May 7, with water already cutting off roads and forcing school closures in the region.
by Alaska News6mo ago2 min readApril 2026
3-Year-Old Dies After Falling Through Ice in Goodnews Bay
A 3-year-old boy died Thursday after falling through thin ice on the Goodnews River in Goodnews Bay, a remote village in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta about 400 miles west of Anchorage.
by Alaska News6mo ago2 min readAbout Breakup & Freeze-up
Breakup and freeze-up in Alaska are the seasonal turns of river and lake ice, as ice forms in fall and breaks apart in spring. The subject takes in ice jams and the floods they cause, spring snowmelt and high water, glacial outburst floods and the danger of thin ice.
Rivers such as the Kuskokwim, Yukon, Susitna and Koyukuk carry the cycle through many communities. An ice jam can back water into villages along the lower Kuskokwim, cut off roads and close schools, and spring flooding in the Interior has led to state disaster declarations. On the North Slope, snowmelt and ice-blocked culverts on rivers such as the Sagavanirktok threaten washouts of the Dalton Highway, the road that supplies the oil fields.
The timing of breakup shapes other parts of life, from the first fishing on Bristol Bay's lakes to damage on Anchorage roads. Riverbank erosion in Talkeetna has led to proposals to buy out property owners, and glacial floods from Suicide Basin down the Mendenhall River prompt evacuations in Juneau.
