Area Sport Fishing Reports
Prince William Sound

Archived Sport Fishing Report

June 03, 2014

Prince William Sound and the
Copper River Delta Area

Week of June 3 to June 9
Issued June 3, 2012

Regulation Reminders and Emergency Orders

• Permits are mandatory for all noncommercial shrimp fisherman. Permits are available at local Fish and Game offices and at select vendors.
• Lingcod season is closed until July 1 to protect nest-guarding males.
• Cutthroat and Rainbow/Steelhead trout fishing is closed until June 15th.
• Ibeck Creek is closed to all sport fishing upstream from a point 3 miles above the Copper River Highway.

Fresh waters

Salmon

• A few sockeye have been spotted in Eyak Lake, so there is some opportunity on fish making their way up. Better numbers should be showing up in the river in the coming weeks.
• In general, sockeye salmon fishing is still just starting up but should be picking up soon. Trolling just outside of river mouths, in salt water is picking up, so they should be entering freshwater in greater numbers soon. Hopefully in the next week.

Trout, Dolly Varden, Grayling etc.

• Cutthroat and rainbow/steelhead trout fishing is closed until June 15 to protect spawning adults.
• Dolly Varden are present in many of the streams throughout Prince William Sound and the Copper River Delta. Use fry/smolt imitation flies or small spinners at lake outlets or stream confluences.
• Hooligan should be showing up around the Alaganik within the next week or so if they aren’t there already… Look for gulls and other birds to point them out.

Salt waters

Halibut, Lingcod, and Rockfish

• Anglers are targeting and being successful at catching larger halibut. Most reports are that fishing continues to get better and better.
• Rockfish angling is quite productive with herring jigs and bait near herring spawning sites. Remember to move once you catch your limit.
• AND REMEMBER if you are targeting multiple species, target rockfish last, and use a deepwater release mechanism on all released rockfish (these devices can turn the chance of survival for a rockfish from near zero to near 100%!)

What’s deepwater release?

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fishingSportFishingInfo.rockfishconservation

Salmon

• Still no reports of hatchery king salmon at Flemming Spit. Returning adults are likely staging in the saltwater near these sites and will be entering the freshwater any day now.
• Hatchery King Salmon smolt will be arriving in Codova today to be imprinted on Flemming Spit waters for the next two weeks,in the hopes that returns from that release continue to increase and provide excellent King Salmon sport fishing opportunities in the future…
--Come and check them out!

Shellfish

• Shrimping continues to be productive near Whittier and Valdez, but it’s generally better and better the further you get away from ports. Start moving those pots out a little deeper as the summer moves on.
• Don’t forget your shrimp permit – everyone needs one.