Anchorage Alaska Area ADFG Weekly Fishing Reports

Alaska Department of Fish & Game's
Anchorage Area
Weekly Fishing Forecast
Disclaimer

This report is reproduced from information provided by Alaska Department of Fish & Game, Anchorage Office, and will be updated weekly throughout the fishing season. The same message can be accessed on their Record-A-Phone "Sportfishing Forecast" at (907) 267-2100.

DATE: Week of August 31st, 2011

Emergency Orders and Regulation Changes

Turnagain Arm Sport Fishing Closures: See page 40 of the Southcentral Alaska Sport Fishing Regulations Summary booklet to locate annual closures on Turnagain Arm streams.
Silver (coho) salmon limits: Only stocked fisheries (Bird, Ship and Campbell creeks) allow for all three salmon in your bag limit to be silver (coho) salmon. The bag limit for all other fisheries is three salmon per day, of which only two may be silver salmon.
Emergency Order No. 2-R-2-01-11 reduces the bag limit of rainbow trout, Arctic char and Arctic grayling in Anchorage area stocked lakes to two fish of each species, of which only one of each may be 12 inches or longer.
Emergency Order No. 2-RT-2-10-11 closes Campbell Creek and Chester Creek (including Westchester and Eastchester lagoons) to the retention of rainbow trout, and eliminates the use of bait in the Chester Creek drainage (including University Lake).

Fresh Waters

Salmon

Recent rains continue to wreak havoc on water conditions in local streams. These rains tend to coax silvers into streams, but also make it harder to catch them.
Silver salmon fishing in Ship Creek has slowed down. Fresh fish are still entering Ship Creek, so now is about the only time you can have the stream to yourself - it just might take a bit longer to catch fish.
Silver fishing at Bird Creek is fair. The pinks and chums at Bird Creek are starting to get a little old looking.
Campbell Creek remains slow for silvers; recent rains will likely bring some silvers out of the lake and into the stream, but stream conditions will make it tough to catch them. Ride the Campbell Creek bike trail and prospect for silvers.
Try fishing for silver salmon in Turnagain Arm in the clear water lens of small streams. Silvers will stop in these clear water sections to rest and clear their gills.

Lake Fishing

All stocked lakes fall under the bag limits established by Emergency Order No. 2-R-2-01-11 described above.
Now is a good time for some fall-time fly fishing. Strap on the belly boat and while hunters are out after ducks fly fishers will likely have local lakes to themselves.
Recently, a few hundred excess broodstock rainbow trout were stocked into each of the following lakes: Jewel, Sand, Delong and Campbell Point.
Cheney Lake was not included in this stocking event because ADF&G will gillnet it in October to hopefully remove all illegally stocked pike.

Rainbow Trout, Dolly Varden, Arctic Grayling - Flowing Waters

Emergency order prohibits the retention of rainbow trout in the Campbell and Chester Creek drainages, and eliminates the use of bait for fishing in Chester Creek and only allows only catch-and-release fishing for rainbow trout.

Northern Pike

Please report any pike you see in Anchorage Area waters to ADF&G.
Keep all the pike you catch in the Anchorage Area, this invasive fish threatens both stocked and wild fisheries.
Lower Fire Lake is still your best place in Anchorage to catch and harvest pike.

Helpful Links

Area webpage: http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/Region2/AREAS/RESBAY/AHPR2res.cfm
Salmon and trout identification pages: http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/statewide/regulations/2001/html/pdfs/01ayksalmonid.pdf
River levels: http://aprfc.arh.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/ahps.cgi?pacr
Lake stocking: http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/statewide/Hatchery/Stocking_search/HTML/stock_search.cfm
Maps to stocked lakes: http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/Region2/LAKEMAPS/HTML/LAKEMAP1.stm
Southcentral informational handouts: http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/region2/pubs.cfm
Safety in bear country: http://www.wildlife.alaska.gov/hunt_trap/hunting/huntak/huntak14.cfm
Enforcement: http://www.dps.state.ak.us/fwp/index.asp
Regulations: http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/statewide/reghome.cfm
Northern pike: http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/region2/areas/anch/pikepage.cfm
OEO/ADA statement: http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/oeostate.php

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