King salmon sports fishing closed from April 1 to June 14
- Jasz Garrett
- 3 hours ago
- 2 min read
Fish and Game states conservative measures taken in last several years to boost king salmon returns have been working, continues approach in Southeast this spring
By Jasz Garrett
Juneau Independent
In a continued effort to increase the return of Chinook, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game closed king salmon sports fishing in Southeast from Wednesday through June 14.
All king salmon caught must be released immediately in marine waters near Juneau, Haines and Skagway, except Seymour Canal, according to an advisory announcement published by the agency Tuesday.
In an interview Wednesday, Daniel Teske, Juneau area management biologist for the department, said the non-retention period helps more fish return to rivers. According to the sport fishing emergency order, Southeast Alaska king salmon escapements from 2016 to 2025 have been below the lower bounds of goals for several of the 11 monitored king salmon indicator systems. Escapement is the number of salmon that are not harvested and return to freshwater to spawn.
Teske said the trend of low productivity is expected to continue in 2026.
“We’ve had these restrictions in place for several years to try to increase our escapement numbers,” he said. “We implement a non-retention period when Southeast Alaska wild stocks king salmon are transiting through those saltwater corridors on their way back to their home rivers, their natal streams. April 1 through June 14 is kind of the peak of the run timing as they transit through.”
The emergency order states the closure implements measures outlined in Southeast Alaska king salmon action plans, and meets objectives under the policy for the management of sustainable salmon fisheries and the Pacific Salmon Treaty.
2025 was one of the highest king escapements Fish and Game has seen in 20 years on the Taku River, according to Teske. He said the sport fishing regulations, which began Wednesday, are similar efforts to boost numbers. While improvement was observed last year, Teske said conservative management measures are still needed.
Beginning June 1, hatchery-produced king salmon will be available for sport fishing. Teske said the department will release these regulations in the coming weeks.
Additionally, from Wednesday through July 31, sport fishing for king salmon is closed in the waters of Section 11-D in the Juneau vicinity as described in 5 AAC 33.200.
• Contact Jasz Garrett at jasz@juneauindependent.com or (907) 723-9356.
