Area Sport Fishing Reports
Tanana

Archived Sport Fishing Report

June 03, 2021

* Just a reminder to all anglers, please do your part to help slow the spread of Covid-19 by practicing social distancing while sport and personal use fishing as well as when shopping for fishing supplies from your local store, and by wearing a face covering when social distancing is not possible.

Sport Fishing

Local Lakes

Lake fishing has been excellent. Most of the local lakes in the drainage are ice-free and have been for the season with catchable rainbow trout and Arctic char. Stocking crews are working this week to stock the more remote lakes near Delta Junction and Tok. Check out the fish stocking search to find out when your favorite lake was last stocked. Try fishing small spinners or bait under a bobber to entice a bite out of a fish cruising the freshly open water looking for food.

Freshwater Fishing

The Tanana is still low and starting to rise with all the warm weather this past week. Boat launches are now ice-free, but some remain soft and muddy. The Chena and Delta Clearwater Rivers have been producing exceptional Arctic grayling catches. Most fly fishermen have been matching the hatch with great catches on mosquito patterns and nymphs. If you are spin casting, try jigs in the white or black colors. Fishing for northern pike has been picking up with the majority of the fish in the drainage done spawning and aggressively feeding. Try fishing near mouths of sloughs or grassy edges along shoreline with spoons and shads. Remember that the northern pike season in the Minto Flats area opened on June 1, and the bag and possession limit has been changed from 5 fish to 2 fish, of which only one may be 30 inches or longer. Burbot fishing in the Tanana drainage is reported as good; try placing setlines or casting out bait (herring, whitefish, or lamprey) near the mouths of sloughs, back eddies, and downstream of tributaries. Lake Trout fishing is picking up since Harding Lake is ice-free. However high alpine lakes (Fielding and Tangles) are about a week away as the ice is just starting to pull away from the shore. Try fishing off shelves near shallow shorelines to target fish cruising into the shallows for feeding with flashy spoons.

Salmon

King salmon are beginning their migration up the Yukon River to Tanana River tributaries. They are anticipated to arrive by late June near the mouths of the Chena and Salcha Rivers.

Emergency Orders

Please review the Emergency Orders and Advisory Announcements below in their entirety before heading out on your next fishing trip:

• Emergency Order 3-NP-U-01-21 reduces the Minto Flats northern pike bag and possession limit.
• Emergency Order 3-R-U-02-21 restricts Piledriver Slough and Moose Creek to catch-and-release fishing for all fish species.

Don’t forget to bring your 2021 sport fishing license. Help maximize social distancing by purchasing your sport fishing license at the ADF&G Online Store. You can print your license from the comfort of your home. Also, be sure to review Emergency Orders and the 2021 Northern Sport Fishing Regulations Summary Booklet for the area you are fishing in before you head out.

For more information, call the Fairbanks office at (907) 459-7200 or the Delta Junction office at (907) 895-4632.