Published May 24, 2025
Hello everyone.
I’m writing today to introduce myself and provide you with the first Copper River salmon management update of the 2025 season. My name is Tracy Hansen and I have recently taken over as the area manager for the Upper Copper and Upper Susitna Rivers with the Division of Sport Fish in Glennallen. As many of you already know, Mark Somerville retired on May 1. I’ve been working alongside Mark for the past 6 years here in the Glennallen office and look forward to moving into this new role. Those who were aware that Mark was retiring were concerned that his weekly updates would stop. However, it is my intention to continue these updates on a weekly basis from now through July. I hope to provide insight on the data we’re gathering and how we are interpreting the salmon runs to offer transparency with our upriver management decisions. You all are receiving this email because it is the list of recipients I inherited from Mark prior to his departure. If you would like to be removed from these communications, please let me know.
This past December, the Alaska Board of Fisheries met in Cordova and made several changes to personal use, sport, and commercial fishing regulations for the Upper Copper/Upper Susitna River drainages and the Copper River District. A summary of Upper Copper/Upper Susitna River Drainages Fishing Regulation Changes is available on the Department’s website, but I will also be mentioning the major changes to the salmon fisheries in their appropriate sections of the email below. The regulatory changes adopted by the Board (that are in effect this season) were made to provide more early-run fish into the upper sections of the Copper River, especially king salmon. Past radiotelemetry projects have shown the earliest running stocks tend to be bound for the furthest upriver tributaries.
This season’s Copper River salmon forecast was released in January. Overall, the Copper River total run of sockeye salmon is forecasted to be excellent and above average, whereas the Chinook salmon run is forecasted to be weak and below average. With that being said, forecasts are simply that – a prediction or estimate of future events – in this case being the salmon runs. While they may not be correct 100% of the time, they do provide an outlook on what may happen and set the tone for the earliest stages of managing the salmon runs. The inriver goal was announced in April and is set at 633,400 salmon. This goal is used to create the daily and cumulative management objectives for Miles Lake sonar passage.
New for the 2025 season – The Board of Fisheries changed the Copper River District commercial fishery start date so that it cannot open until after May 21. Previously, the commercial fishery could open the first Monday or Thursday on or after May 15 each year. This 1-week delay in the commercial fishery has prevented 2 commercial openings this season that would have otherwise occurred under the previous regulations.
The commercial fishery had its first opener yesterday, May 22, for 12 hours with the Expanded Inside Chinook salmon closed waters in place. A total of about 27,000 sockeye salmon and 1,080 Chinook salmon were harvested. Sockeye salmon harvest was about one-third of what was anticipated for this opener. The Chinook salmon harvest was low and may indicate a relatively weak run, with the caveat that this is the first data point of the season and little information regarding the true magnitude of the king salmon run can be interpreted from it.
As a precaution for Chinook salmon, the next fishing period, scheduled for Monday, May 26, will be limited to 12 hours with the Expanded Inside Chinook Salmon Closure Area again in place. The time of Monday’s commercial opener is delayed by 3 hours (will open at 10AM instead of 7AM). 7 AM Monday is low tide, making king salmon potentially more susceptible to harvest near shore during that time frame. Delaying the opening by a few hours will hopefully allow salmon to move across the bar with the incoming, large tide.
Miles Lake Sonar is currently operational and counting fish. When the Division of Commercial Fisheries crew from Cordova arrived at the sonar site near the Million Dollar Bridge a two weeks ago on May 7, there was only about 3 feet of snow on the ground – a happy sight compared to last year’s 12 feet of snow! The crew worked hard to get the sonars deployed for a few hours starting May 12. Because of large ice chunks continuing to flow out of Miles Lake and down past the sonar site, the crew was only able to operate for several hours per day through May 13, as they could not risk leaving the equipment left out overnight due to potential damage from ice flow. Beginning May 16, both sonar units were deployed for 24-hours and that has continued since.
Total salmon passage past the sonar is 9,751 fish through yesterday, May 22.
You can monitor the sonar counts, and how they compare to the anticipated or expected counts, by CLICKING HERE. Miles Lake sonar counts are also found on the Department’s Fish Counts webpage.
NVE Baird Canyon camp is fully operational and both of their fish wheels are spinning. The first Chinook salmon was caught on May 18 and to date, a total of 36 king salmon have been captured, tagged, and released. The upriver Canyon Creek camp is currently fishing 1 of their 2 fish wheels and are diligently working on their 2nd wheel. We are only stepping into the beginning days of the run, so little can be interpreted from the current capture rates in regard to the overall strength and timing at this point.
Chinook salmon capture and recapture rates at the NVE fish wheels, along with upriver harvests, are projected out inseason to help assess if we will meet the escapement goal. The established Copper River king salmon sustainable escapement goal is 21,000-31,000 fish.
The Copper River stage gauge in Chitina is online. You can view this yourself at the NOAA site. For the past 3 days, the gauge reading has been averaging around 10 feet, which is similar to last year at this time and is one of the lowest readings for this date since 2006. Many of you know from just looking out your front door, the Copper River is very low right now.
New for the 2025 season – The Board of Fisheries changed the Chitina Subdistrict personal use fishery start date so the earliest it can open is June 10. Previously, the personal use fishery could be opened as early as June 7 if adequate numbers of salmon had passed the sonar. Another notable change is that king salmon may not be kept until July 1. Not allowing Chinook salmon harvest in the fishery during the month of June is anticipated to reduce overall king salmon harvest in this fishery by about 70%.
The Chitina Subdistrict Personal Use salmon dip net fishery is tentatively scheduled to open at 12pm noon on Thursday, June 12. However, if sonar counts are stronger than anticipated, the fishery could open as early as June 10; but remember likewise, if they are weaker than anticipated, the opening could be delayed. Since it takes approximately 2 weeks for fish to travel from the sonar to the Chitina Subdistrict, the sonar counts from May 26-June 1 will be used to determine fishing time for the week of June 9. The first Advisory Announcement for the official opening will be released Wednesday, June 4.
The Glennallen Subdistrict subsistence salmon fishery opens on June 1 by regulation. Federally qualified rural residents are able to fish as early as May 15.
It’s still pretty early for salmon to be entering into the Gulkana or Klutina Rivers, and it will likely take another week before king salmon start to trickle into the Lower Gulkana River.
The Gulkana River Chinook salmon counting tower project is tentatively scheduled to begin June 3, although that is always influenced by river stage and if the flash panels can be installed at the current river flow and depth. The tower crew will likely head upriver on May 30 to open up camp and begin installation. Once operational, the tower counts will be published on the Fish Counts webpage.
ADF&G, NVE, and the Prince William Sound Science Center are conducting a cooperative radiotelemetry project on sockeye salmon. This is the 2nd and final year of this project, so continue to watch for little wires extending out the mouths of radio-tagged sockeye salmon. This project seeks to compare drainagewide distribution and run timing with a similar study conducted about 15 years ago. If you catch a radio-tagged salmon, you can harvest it, but we do ask that you contact the office at 907-822-3309 so we can collect data on when and where the fish was harvested, and the tag number located on the tag itself. Also, if you can return the tag to us in a timely manner, it can be reused this season and put into another salmon. So please bring or mail in your radio tags – there is a drop box out front if you pass through after hours.
Sockeye salmon are radiotagged at NVE’s Baird Canyon fishwheels. The first fish was tagged on May 17 and through yesterday, May 22, a total of 8 sockeye salmon have been radiotagged and additional 6 fish are scheduled to be tagged today. With low water and flows, we anticipate those first tagged fish to be swimming upstream quickly and by next week, we may be detecting them in the mainstem Copper River upstream of Chitina, or possibly even further upstream.
SOCKEYE SALMON: We are watching sonar counts as well as commercial harvests. We hope to see sonar counts ramp up each day and continue to build through next week. Upriver decisions are solely directed by sonar passage for the sockeye salmon fisheries. This upcoming Monday’s commercial harvest will also provide some valuable information.
KING SALMON: Currently, very little information is available on king salmon run strength. Typically, we’d now have 3 data points from the commercial fishery but with the new regulations, we no longer have that information. Presumably, with the delay in the commercial fishery, some of those fish may have already entered into the Copper River estuary and lower portions of the river. We will be watching the catch rates at the NVE fish wheels to get as early of an idea of Chinook salmon run strength as we can. Commercial king salmon harvest rates may provide additional insight if they climb or fall significantly.
Feel free to reach out with any questions. I am optimistic of what this season will bring forward and hope to speak and meet with many of you. Wishing you all a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend.
-Tracy
Tracy R. Hansen Area Management Biologist Upper Copper/Upper Susitna Alaska Department of Fish & Game Division of Sport Fish – Glennallen 907.822.3309
Contact us:
Chitina Dipnetters Association
PO Box 35230
Ft Wainwright, Alaska 99703
info@chitinadipnetters.com
A 501(c)(4) non-profit organization.