Upper Cook Inlet Commercial Fishing Announcement No. 6 opens commercial salmon fishing with drift gillnets from 5:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 28, 2023, in the Expanded
Kasilof Section of the Upper Subdistrict only.
As a reminder, drift gillnet fishing activity must remain at least one and one-half miles from the Kenai Peninsula shoreline south of the Kenai River.
Through June 25, the cumulative sockeye salmon escapement estimate for the Kasilof River was approximately 65,500 fish and the current mean run timing projection of escapement is approximately 460,000 sockeye salmon which exceeds the biological escapement goal of 140,000– 320,000 sockeye salmon. Fishing in the above-described waters is warranted to target sockeye salmon returning to the Kasilof River, while minimizing the harvest of Chinook salmon.
Fishermen and processors are reminded of the legal requirement to report all commercially harvested salmon on a fish ticket, whether sold or kept for personal use, using the correct statistical fishing area or areas (5 AAC 39.130(c)(7)).
Fish harvested in the drift gillnet fishery during the Expanded Kasilof Section only fishing period should be reported in statistical areas 244-62.
