FEATURED STORIES

What is a Fish Ladder?

By Jeff Rice, Petersburg Area Management Biologist, Petersburg, Alaska

A fish ladder is a series of steps or pools designed to help anadromous fish bypass obstructions. Fish use them to enter hatcheries and bypass dams; in Southeast Alaska's Tongass National Forest, our wild salmon also benefit from fish ladders, yet most people are unaware of these hidden engineered structures.

Southeast Alaska's steep mountains and fragmented water systems create a challenging landscape for salmon. Millions of salmon return to these coastal waters each year, driven by an instinct to swim upstream and spawn. However, natural obstructions often halt their journeys. Waterfalls, steep cascades, rockslides, and debris jams create impassable barriers, locking away miles of pristine upstream habitat. To overcome these natural blockades and bolster fish populations, conservationists and resource managers utilize a time-tested engineering solution: the fish ladder.

Fish ladders can be cut directly into bedrock or fabricated from metal and installed in combination with concrete and wood. By breaking down a single, insurmountable drop into a series of low, manageable steps, these structures allow salmon to leap from pool to pool or swim through submerged openings, gradually gaining elevation until they pass the barrier and gain access to gravel beds for spawning and calm, nutrient-rich side channels for rearing juveniles.

More available habitat means the watershed can support more salmon, which raises the total population. In Southeast Alaska, where wild salmon fisheries form the backbone of both the local economy and Indigenous cultural traditions, ensuring access to high-quality habitat is paramount.

However, building and maintaining fish ladders in Southeast Alaska has its challenges. The remoteness makes construction logistically complex and expensive. Engineers must design structures that can withstand extreme weather, heavy winter ice, and massive seasonal floods.

In the Tongass, the United States Forest Service maintains almost all of them. One notable exception is the Falls Creek Fish Ladder, located just 10 miles south of Petersburg, and maintained by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game's Division of Sport Fish. Built in 1950, this is one of the older ladders in Southeast Alaska.

With easy access, this fish ladder offers a great opportunity for people to visit and observe salmon moving around the barrier falls, after which the creek is named.

The Falls Creek Fish Ladder receives numerous visitors each year. Tourists, local anglers, and schoolchildren walk the short trail in late summer and early fall, hoping to catch sight of wild salmon jumping up the ladder.

Falls Creek serves as an ambassador for fish ladders throughout the Tongass, whose remote locations mean few ever get to see them. Falls Creek has viewing platforms and interpretive signs that inform visitors of the different species that benefit.

Fishing within a fish ladder is strictly prohibited across Alaska, ensuring protection for migrating fish. Additionally, fishing within 300 feet of a fish ladder is generally prohibited statewide. Southeast Alaska is the exception where fishing within 300 feet is permitted unless otherwise closed by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

The regulations provide additional authority and flexibility to the department so that it can respond to conservation needs and local conditions.

Ketchikan and Juneau also have easy-to-see fish ladders, though primarily used for hatchery-returning salmon rather than wild salmon. Ketchikan Creek Fish Ladder is located right downtown. King and coho salmon returning to Deer Mountain Hatchery use this fish ladder, along with wild pink salmon.

Macaulay Salmon Hatchery Fish Ladder in Juneau is 450 feet long and allows chum, king, coho, and sockeye salmon to move from saltwater to the hatchery. Visitors may view the ladder from above and through a viewing window to better understand how, in this case, a fish ladder can mimic a stream.

Ultimately, fish ladders in Southeast Alaska represent a successful partnership between engineering and ecology. They do not alter the wild, pristine nature of the rivers; rather, they provide a targeted, helping hand where geography has created a strict bottleneck.

By opening previously inaccessible upstream habitats, these structures help Southeast Alaska's river systems realize their full ecological potential.

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The Blackfish of Ballaine Lake

By April Harding-Scurr, Information Officer 2, Fairbanks, Alaska

Austin Routt was happily fishing in Ballaine Lake on the morning of Monday, August 24, 2026. A PhD student in the Department of Geosciences at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, rainbow trout fishing at Ballaine Lake had become a regular part of Austin's daily summer routine.

That morning, Austin was using his Tenkara fly rod to drag his Bead Head Prince Nymph, a fast-sinking fly that works well in cloudy water, along the bottom of the lake since there wasn't any surface activity.

Austin's technique must have worked; he felt a bite and pulled up his catch. But instead of a rainbow trout, Austin pulled up a little 5 1/2-inch mystery fish.

Confronted with this strange little fish, Austin contacted the Alaska Department of Fish and Game to ask what it was. He was guessing a baby burbot, although, to his knowledge, "rainbow trout was the only species in Ballaine."

Turns out that the fish Austin caught was not a burbot at all but a native Alaska blackfish.

Alaska blackfish (Dallia pectoralis), known as Emmonak in Yupik, Imangaqu in central Yupik, and Ooneesh near Galena, are found only in Alaska and eastern Siberia. They typically live in dense vegetation in swamps, ponds, rivers, and lakes.

Amazingly, these unique fish can pull oxygen out of the water and also directly from the air, allowing them to live in low-oxygen environments such as murky water and below-freezing water temperatures.

In Interior, northern, and western Alaska, blackfish are primarily a subsistence food source. Alaska blackfish traps called fyke nets can only be used for subsistence fishing in designated areas in Interior, northern, and western Alaska.

Taking advantage of Alaska blackfish's ability to "breathe" air, subsistence fishing usually occurs in winter. Fyke nets are placed under the ice where blackfish gather in large numbers near drilled or natural holes where oxygen is more readily available.

As the fish come up to breathe the air, they are trapped in the funnel as they go back underwater.

Although it is legal to sport fish in Interior Alaska for blackfish, catching one on a hook and line in the middle of summer is very uncommon, to say the least.

But, like Austin said, "I was using a wet fly on a Tenkara rod along the bottom since there wasn't any surface activity, so I guess it was just the right way for a blackfish to see a little bug."

Interested in learning more about Alaska blackfish? Read the Alaska Fish & Wildlife News article about Alaska blackfish .

For questions about subsistence fishing for Alaska blackfish, contact the ADF&G Fairbanks Commercial Fisheries Office at 907-459-7274.

FROM THE FIELD

The Fish Count: Invasive Northern Pike in Southcentral Alaska

What happens when a freshwater predator starts using Cook Inlet to reach new waters?

In the latest episode of The Fish Count , we sit down with ADF&G invasive species coordinator and research biologist Parker Bradley to talk about invasive northern pike in Southcentral Alaska.

Parker explains how pike were introduced south of the Alaska Range, how they spread, and why their presence can have significant consequences for native fish populations, particularly juvenile coho and Chinook salmon.

One of the most fascinating parts of the conversation focuses on research showing that some northern pike are moving through the brackish waters of Cook Inlet.

Parker walks us through how researchers use chemistry stored in a fish's otolith, or ear bone, to reconstruct where that fish has been. That work has helped confirm that pike have traveled through Cook Inlet and entered freshwater systems, raising new questions about where they could show up next.

We also tackle some common misconceptions about northern pike, look at what researchers have learned from examining tens of thousands of pike stomachs, and discuss what anglers can do if they encounter an invasive species.

If you have ever wondered why northern pike are considered invasive in Southcentral Alaska, how they affect salmon, or how biologists figure out where these fish are moving, this episode is worth a listen.

Listen to The Fish Count on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart Radio, and Amazon Music. It can also be found on the ADF&G Fish Count podcast page .

QUICK LEARNING

Rainy Days, Snow on the Peaks, Fish in the Tanks: Come Get Schooled

Fall weather is in full swing across Alaska, making it the perfect time for an indoor outing at the Ship Creek Fisheries Center at the William Jack Hernandez Sport Fish Hatchery in Anchorage or the Tanana Valley Fisheries Center at the Ruth Burnett Sport Fish Hatchery in Fairbanks!

In Anchorage, the Ship Creek Fisheries Center offers a short outdoor path along Ship Creek, where you can spot fish in the creek and see the waterfall, before heading inside for interactive exhibits for adults and kids alike.

In Fairbanks, the Tanana Valley Fisheries Center offers an entirely indoor experience, perfect for a fun, easy outing.

The hatcheries are beginning to fill with fish, a great chance to see them up close and learn how fish are reared to support Alaska's fisheries.

At the Ship Creek Fisheries Center, you can still see coho salmon in Ship Creek and by the waterfall. School groups are welcome, too. Explore at your own pace with the audio tour, exhibits, and videos, or book a guided tour at Ship Creek in advance .

New Hours Starting October 1

• Ship Creek Fisheries Center: Monday-Saturday, 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m., for self-guided tours. Closed Sundays. Guided tours are available Monday-Friday based on staff availability.

• Tanana Valley Fisheries Center: Monday-Friday, 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Self-guided tours only.

Can't Stop By? Watch From Home

• Take a virtual tour of the William Jack Hernandez Sport Fish Hatchery and meet the staff as they walk you through the six major fish-rearing areas.

• Take a virtual tour of the Ruth Burnett Sport Fish Hatchery in Fairbanks and see the programs happening there.

ANGLER ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Last Call for Cover Photo Entries

Time's running out to get your photo on the cover or on the inside pages of next year's Alaska Sport Fishing Regulations Summary books.

Entries close at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 31, 2026.

We've loved what's come in so far, but we'd really like to see more of Alaska. Did you fish in Northern, Southwest, Southcentral, or Southeast waters? If you fished in any of those areas, please send us your photos.

It doesn't have to be a big catch. A day on the water, your favorite fishing spot, the scenery, or the people who make fishing in your corner of the state special are all accepted.

One thing to check before you hit submit: life jackets. If a photo shows a child under 13 without one, we can't use it in the sport fishing regulations books, no matter how great the shot is.

Alaska law requires kids under 13 to wear a Coast Guard-approved life jacket anytime they're in an open boat, on deck, or being towed, including tubing or waterskiing. A quick look now will save you from picking the perfect photo only to find out it can't be used.

Entering is simple. Upload up to three photos taken within the last two years - no screenshots - and fill out the online consent form. A parent or guardian of children under 18 will need to submit and confirm consent.

We can't consider photos that show unsafe practices, fish and game violations, or promotional advertising.

Read the 2027 Sport Fishing Regulations photo contest information .

Ready to enter? Submit your photos through the online entry form .

While you're digging through your photos, remember that you can also submit your Five Salmon, Stillwater, Saltwater, or Stream Slam catches, or a trophy fish, to ADF&G's Angler Recognition Programs .

RECIPES

Beyond the Catch: BBQ Smoked Salmon Pizza

Try a different spin on Alaska salmon with BBQ smoked salmon pizza.

EVENTS & DEADLINES

Sport Fishing Classes

Registration opens two weeks before each class.

• November 25, 2026: Ice Fishing and Tip-Up Making

• December 16, 2026: Ice Fishing 101