Sport Fishing
RSSSport, charter, and personal-use fishing: derby culture, dipnetting, guide operations, sport regulation changes, angler community
Alaska Peninsula Bering Sea drainages: non-residents banned from keeping king salmon starting July 18
Non-resident anglers cannot keep king salmon in Bering Sea drainages starting July 18, while Alaska residents get a one-per-day limit.
by Bill AlaskaNews2d ago2 min readAIAlaska Peninsula
The sockeye are running strong on the Kenai, and the state just doubled your limit
Good news for Kenai anglers and dipnetters: strong sockeye runs just pushed the daily limit to six fish on the Kenai, Russian, and Kasilof — with more dipnet room on the Kasilof, too.
by Bill AlaskaNews1w ago1 min readAIKenai Peninsula, Alaska
Weak fall run closes Yukon River chum fishing July 22
A weak fall chum run that may fall short of U.S.-Canada treaty minimums is closing Yukon River chum fishing — sport and subsistence — from July 22 through year's end.
by Bill AlaskaNews3d ago1 min readAIYukon River
Petersburg's Blind Slough opens fully to king salmon as hatchery return surpasses forecast
Petersburg's Blind Slough opens fully to king salmon fishing starting Saturday after Crystal Lake Hatchery's return beat forecasts and broodstock needs were met.
by Bill AlaskaNews1d ago1 min readAIPetersburg, Alaska
Southeast anglers get a bump in the king limit
Nonresident anglers can keep two kings a day in Southeast starting Saturday, up from one, after harvest came in under target — a rare loosening in a tight king year.
by Bill AlaskaNews1w ago1 min readAISoutheast Alaska
The king window is closing near Petersburg and Wrangell
The king run near Petersburg and Wrangell is past its peak, and the window to fish the hatchery-fed terminal harvest area is closing — with wild-king waters still locked down till July 15.
by Bill AlaskaNews1w ago1 min readAIPetersburg, Alaska
Snowpack flooding scatters Minto Flats pike, forcing anglers to adapt
Snowpack flooding at Minto Flats has scattered northern pike across wider habitat, forcing anglers to switch tactics and try alternative Interior lakes like Cushman and Little Harding.
by Bill AlaskaNews2d ago2 min readAIMinto Flats, Alaska
Tanana River chum salmon sport fishery reopens as run exceeds forecast
Tanana River sport anglers can keep three chum salmon again as of Wednesday after the run exceeded forecasts, but the broader Yukon drainage remains closed due to weak returns.
by Bill AlaskaNews1w ago2 min readAITanana River
Kuskokwim subsistence fishing reopens as salmon run strong
Subsistence fishing is back open on the lower Kuskokwim as salmon run strong — and the state is managing the mainstem again after losing a long fight over who controls the river.
by Bill AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAIKuskokwim River, Alaska
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.
by Bill AlaskaNews2d ago2 min readAICopper River, Alaska
A small gold permit, on a river fighting for its future
A routine gold-mining permit on a Susitna tributary is a small piece of a much bigger fight over a salmon river conservationists just named one of America's most endangered.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4d ago2 min readAIYentna Mining District, Alaska
Tanana kings closed all season; chum fishing back open after run surges
Alaska closed all king salmon fishing in the Tanana River drainage through September 30 due to a weak forecast, but reopened chum fishing on July 8 after the summer run exceeded expectations.
by Bill AlaskaNews2d ago2 min readAITanana River
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 AlaskaNews4d ago1 min readAIBristol Bay
Strong sockeye at China Poot, but clammers now need a permit before heading out
Alright! So China poot this weekend, who's in??!
by Bill AlaskaNews3d ago1 min readAIKachemak Bay, Alaska
Kodiak rockfish rules now cap single-species harvest, push anglers to deeper water
Kodiak sport anglers now face species-specific rockfish caps through year-end, limiting black rockfish to two per day, pushing them to fish deeper water as stocks decline from charter pressure.
by Bill AlaskaNews3d ago2 min readAIKodiak Island, Alaska
Fish Creek sport fishery closes today; dipnet opening possible if counts hold
Fish Creek sport fishery closes today, but Alaska residents could dipnet sockeye starting late July if ADF&G counts exceed 35,000 salmon in coming days.
by Bill AlaskaNews3d ago1 min readAIMatanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska
Ship Creek closes for 10 days as a king shortfall hits the hatchery
Anchorage's Ship Creek closes to all fishing July 3–13. A weak king return isn't meeting hatchery broodstock goals that supply fisheries across Southcentral, not just the creek.
by Bill AlaskaNews2w ago1 min readAIAnchorage, Alaska
On the Kasilof, Alaska is opening the sockeye floodgates and holding the line on kings
On the Kasilof, Alaska is opening the sockeye floodgates and rationing the kings on the same water — a tidy snapshot of where the salmon stand. Grab a dipnet.
by Bill AlaskaNews3w ago3 min readAIKasilof River, Alaska
Kenai guide faces mandatory court date after client keeps 2 extra sockeye on Kasilof
A Kenai fishing guide faces mandatory court after a client kept 8 sockeye salmon instead of the legal limit of 6 on the Kasilof River on July 4.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2w ago1 min readAIKasilof River, Alaska
Wisconsin man cited for lifting king salmon on Anchor River
Alaska Wildlife Troopers cited a 19-year-old Wisconsin man for lifting a king salmon from the Anchor River and releasing it, violating an active Emergency Order requiring all kings to stay in the water.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 4w ago1 min readAIAnchor River, Alaska
So few kings are left in the Situk that the state closed their last pool
The Situk's kings have nearly vanished — 100 counted at midseason — so the state closed a popular fishing hole to shield the few survivors from accidental hooking.
by Bill AlaskaNews1w ago1 min readAISituk River, Alaska
Free Fairbanks streambank workshop opens July 15 for landowners and anglers
Fairbanks landowners and anglers can register free for a two-day streambank restoration workshop July 15 and 16 that teaches erosion control and fish habitat work.
by Bill AlaskaNews1w ago1 min readAIFairbanks, Alaska
Mat-Su sockeye opens up — but the kings stay closed
Two Mat-Su sockeye fisheries just opened, with a few early fish already in the inlet — while kings stay closed across the Susitna and beyond, hatchery spots aside.
by Bill AlaskaNews1w ago1 min readAIMat-Su Valley, Alaska
Alaska's kings are down almost everywhere — here's the picture
From the Yukon to Kodiak to Prince William Sound, Alaska is closing or tightening king salmon fishing nearly statewide — a slow-motion decline now measured in decades, not seasons.
by Bill AlaskaNews2w ago3 min readAIYukon River
Upper Copper River king salmon sport fishery closed through August 10
Alaska closes all Upper Copper River king salmon sport fishing from July 10 through August 10 after the lowest run count on record threatens the escapement goal.
by Bill AlaskaNews1w ago2 min readAIUpper Copper River, Alaska
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 AlaskaNews3w ago2 min readAINushagak-Mulchatna River drainage, Alaska
A snagged salmon is a released salmon: a Kasilof reminder
On the Kasilof, a salmon hooked anywhere but the mouth has to go back — no matter how it got there. A visiting teen found out the hard way this week.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1w ago1 min readAIKasilof River, Alaska
Cook Inlet Razor Clam Harvest Now Requires a Permit
Cook Inlet razor clam diggers must now get a permit before heading out this summer, and face a December 31 reporting deadline or lose eligibility next year, even if they never dug a clam.
by Bill AlaskaNews3w ago2 min readAICook Inlet, Alaska
One place near Anchorage where you can still keep a king
ings are closed across the Mat-Su and Northern Cook Inlet — except Eklutna Tailrace, a stocked fishery where you can still take one home while the wild runs stay shut.
by Bill AlaskaNews2w ago1 min readAIMat-Su Valley, Alaska
Ship Creek reopens to fishing Tuesday, but ADF&G bans king retention for rest of season
Ship Creek is back open after 11 days — just don't expect to keep a king, because retention's banned for the rest of the season.
by Bill AlaskaNews4d ago1 min readAIAnchorage, Alaska
Kenai River king salmon fishery closed through mid-August 2026
Kenai River king salmon fishing closed May 1 through August 15, 2026 under emergency order. Third consecutive year of full closure due to conservation concerns. Other species fishing allowed with single-hook lures only. Nearby Kasilof River open to limited hatchery king salmon fishing.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readAINorthern Kenai Peninsula
Kenai, Russian River Sockeye Bag Limit Jumps to 6 Fish Thursday
Red fish, blue fish, me fish, you fish
by Bill AlaskaNews3w ago2 min readAIKenai River, Alaska
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.
by Bill AlaskaNews2w ago1 min readAICopper River, Alaska
Halibut anglers on Alaska charters now pay $20 a day — and the money is funding a decades-old battle over who gets to catch the fish
Alaska charter anglers now pay $20 per day to keep halibut in Southeast and Southcentral waters, a federal fee that funds the charter sector's purchase of commercial fishing quota to expand their halibut allocation.
by Alaska News1mo ago2 min readAIAlaska
Upper Copper River king salmon fishery requires new permit in 2026
Alaska Department of Fish and Game now requires a free individual permit for all anglers targeting king salmon in the Upper Copper River drainage, with mandatory harvest reporting by August 31, 2026.
by Alaska News2mo ago2 min readAIAlaska
The Kenai's kings are closed again — another summer without Alaska's most iconic salmon
Another year with King closures and no easy answer in sight
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readAIKenai Peninsula
On one of the world's great king rivers, a 'poor' rating is partly the plan
Fish go bye bye? Oh no0ooo
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readAIBristol Bay
Russian River Sanctuary opens early June 18 for sockeye season
Sunrise, sunset. Sunrise, sunset. Quickly - swim the fish.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readAIRussian River, Alaska
Troopers are running an enforcement blitz on Bristol Bay's peak season
Troopers cited four more in Bristol Bay last week — mostly for improperly marked boats, the very violation Fish and Game flagged as a season priority. Part of a bigger crackdown.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1w ago1 min readAIBristol Bay
The Eklutna Tailrace is the only open king salmon fishery in the Mat-Su
Emergency orders closed king salmon fishing across the Susitna River drainage, Little Susitna River, and West Cook Inlet, leaving the Eklutna Tailrace as the sole remaining location for king salmon harvest in Northern Cook Inlet during the peak third week of June.
by Alaska News1mo ago2 min readAIMat-Su
