Area Sport Fishing Reports
Prince of Wales Island

July 7, 2025

July is a great month for fishing in the salt and fresh waters of Prince of Wales Island as the number and variety of salmon increases. King, coho, pink, sockeye and chum salmon and bottomfish such as halibut, lingcod and rockfish are available in marine waters surrounding the island. Sockeye and summer run coho salmon are entering some drainages and trout and Dolly Varden fishing is good with a vast number of lakes and creeks to target them.

Check out the wefishak page on the ADF&G website for the gofishak interactive map to discover fishing locations and information on species run timing, fishing gear selections, and boat and angler access tips!

Chinook (King) Salmon

The harvest of king salmon closed to nonresidents on July 7 but remains open for residents.

Chinook Salmon Regulations for 2025

• The resident daily bag limit is one fish over 28 inches.

Sockeye (red) Salmon

Sockeye run timing varies greatly by drainage from June through August but sockeye are currently in many drainages such as Hatchery Creek, Karta and Sarkar rivers. Good sockeye salmon systems are the Thorne, Sarkar and Karta rivers, Hatchery, Ratz and Eagle creeks.

Coho (silver) Salmon

Summer run coho salmon are entering some freshwater drainages. Summer coho salmon are typically found in systems with lakes such as 108, Ratz, Logjam and Hatchery creeks and Karta and Thorne rivers.

Marine coho salmon fishing is better than usual for this time of the summer possibly indicating large coho returns to southeast Alaska. Limits of coho were documented by ADFG creel technicians in Craig/Klawock in the days before this report.

Pink and Chum Salmon

Pink and chum salmon are now present in marine waters and their numbers will build through July as they migrate to freshwater drainages.

Trout and Dolly Varden

Rainbow trout, cutthroat trout, and Dolly Varden are available in many of the freshwater drainages of POW. Trout and Dolly Varden are feeding opportunistically on salmon fry, sculpins and aquatic insects. Productive drainages for trout include Luck, Klawock, and Sarkar lakes, the Thorne River, and Ratz Creek. Regulations regarding size limits, bag limits, and the use of bait can vary by waterbody, so please check the Southeast Alaska Sport Fish Regulation Summary.

Halibut

Halibut fishing will remain good through the summer.

Lingcod

Lingcod are especially abundant on the west coast of Prince of Wales but can be caught on inside waters as well.

Rockfish

Rockfish can be caught year-round. There is a section on the Fish and Game website for identifying common rockfish of POW.

All sport fishing vessels are required to have at least one functional deepwater release device (regardless of species targeted), and anglers will be REQUIRED to use a deepwater release device to release rockfish to the depth it was hooked or to a depth of at least 100 feet. Please see the Southeast Alaska Sport Fish Regulation Summary or visit your local ADF&G office to see examples of rockfish release devices and learn about their use.

Demersal Shelf Rockfish

The retention of demersal shelf rockfish, including yelloweye is open for residents of Alaska with a daily bag limit of one and possession limit of two.

Demersal shelf rockfish, including yelloweye, will be open for nonresidents from July 1 through August 25 with an annual limit of one fish.

Demersal shelf rockfish are the following species: yelloweye, quillback, copper, canary, china, tiger, and rosethorn rockfish.

Slope Rockfish

Some slope rockfish are common in marine waters surrounding POW. The most common species are silvergrey and vermilion rockfish.

• Resident and nonresidents daily bag limit of one per day; one in possession

Pelagic Rockfish

Pelagic rockfish provide good fishing in the marine waters surrounding POW.

• Season: year-round
• Three per day; six in possession

For additional information regarding rockfish identification and management, please refer to the rockfish conservation page.

Regulation summaries and copies of the news releases are available at the Craig ADF&G office.

For further information, please contact the Prince of Wales Area Management Biologist: Craig Schwanke (907) 826-2498.