Area Sport Fishing Reports
Mat-Su

Archived Sport Fishing Report

July 13, 2023

Local Lakes

• Recently stocked lakes include: Diamond, Mile 180, Gate, Slipper (Eska), Kepler/Bradley, South Rolly, and Tanaina.
• Head to Summit Lake in Hatchers Pass for beautiful views while fishing for rainbows.
• In the core area, try Matanuska, Echo, Kepler/Bradley, Loberg, Meirs, Canoe, Irene, Long (special regulations apply), and Finger lakes.
• East on the Glenn Hwy, fish Ravine Lake for rainbows and Bonnie Lake for rainbows and grayling. Weiner lake also has both rainbows and grayling and Knob Lake off Alaskom Rd is a scenic lake with good rainbow fishing.

Freshwater Fishing

Salmon

• Beginning July 14, standard regulations apply when fishing for pinks, chums, sockeye, and coho salmon. Any king salmon, including jacks incidentally hooked must be immediately released and may not be removed from the waters, except for the stocked fishery at the Eklutna Tailrace where king salmon fishing is open year-round.
• Some chums and pinks are making their way up the Susitna. Try the mouth of Deshka for pinks and perhaps an early coho salmon.
• Pinks and chums are beginning to show on the lower Little Su and generally the first coho is caught sometime this week.
• Try the weekend only fishery at the mouth of Cottonwood Creek for some bright sockeye salmon. It’s open to fishing 5 a.m.-10 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.
• Fish Creek sockeye counts are posted on our webpage under Fish Counts. The sport fishery is now closed by regulation including weekends. Stay tuned in case the personal use fishery is opened by emergency order. The department must project more than 35,000 sockeye salmon prior to opening this dip net fishery. This fishery typically opens towards the end of July.
• The Susitna personal use dipnet fishery is now open on the lower Susitna River. This fishery runs 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. on Saturdays and Wednesdays only from July 10 to July 31. The designated area for fishing is between regulatory markers posted approximately one mile downstream of Susitna Station (just below the Yentna River mouth) down to markers posted just below the Alexander Creek cut-off/northern tip of Bell Island. Access is by boat or plane only.
  • This fishery is part of the Upper Cook Inlet Personal Use permit. An Upper Cook Inlet Personal Use permit is required in addition to a sport fishing license. Only Alaska residents may participate in this fishery. Upper Cook Inlet Personal Use permit harvest and participation must be reported online no later than August 15 through the ADF&G harvest reporting webpage.

Northern Pike

• Anglers may retain as many pike as they catch - there is no bag or possession limit. In the freshwaters of West Cook Inlet the Knik Arm, and Susitna River drainage, anglers are not allowed to release live pike back into the water.
• South Rolly Lake in the Nancy Lake State Recreation Area has pike and is also stocked with catchable rainbow trout. Canoe rentals are available onsite at the state campground.
• Fish Big Lake or Long Lake in Willow for road system pike. If you have a canoe, try the lakes on the canoe trail in the Nancy Lakes Recreation Area.

Rainbow Trout

• Waters are subsiding on the Parks Highway streams and rainbow trout fishing should be very good this week. Try Willow, Montana, Kashwitna, Little Willow and Goose creeks. Fish wet flies like wooly buggers, leeches, sculpins and the infamous egg sucking leech.
• Grayling fishing has been good too. Try gold or yellow flies or lures, keep the sizes small. Bead head nymphs, Griffith Gnats, Elk Hair Caddis, Mayflies, or Stimulators are productive fly patterns.

Emergency Orders

Please review the emergency orders and advisory announcements below in their entirety before heading out on your next fishing trip.

• Emergency Order 2-RS-2-42-23 closing dipnetting in the vicinity of Anderson Creek of the lower Susitna River effective 6:00 a.m. Wednesday, July 12 through 11:00 p.m. Saturday, July 30, 2023. The area closed to dipnetting is identified by ADF&G markers located approximately 50 feet upstream and 300 feet downstream of the mouth of Anderson Creek. In addition, dipnetting is not allowed in Anderson Creek.
• Emergency Order 2-KS-2-07-23 restricts fishing for king salmon in the Little Susitna River to catch-and-release only and sport fishing gear is restricted to one unbaited, single-hook, artificial lure. This emergency order is effective through 11:59 p.m. Thursday, July 13, 2023.
• Emergency Order 2-KS-2-05-23 closes sport fishing for king salmon in the Susitna River drainage, except for the Yentna River. Fishing for king salmon (any size) is closed in units 1,2,3,5, and 6 of the Susitna River. Unit 4 (Yentna River drainage) of the Susitna River is open to catch-and-release fishing only. Sport fishing gear is limited to one unbaited, single-hook, artificial lure in all flowing waters of the Susitna River drainage. This emergency order is in effect through 11:59 p.m. Thursday, July 13, 2023.
• Emergency Order 2-KS-2-06-23 closes all waters of the West Cook Inlet Management Area to sport fishing for king salmon, including catch and release fishing. The area affected by this Emergency Order includes all freshwater drainages flowing into Cook Inlet from Cape Douglas north to the Susitna River. This emergency order is in effect through 11:50 p.m. Friday, June 30, 2023.
• Emergency Order 2-R-2-02-23 adds Leech, Summit, Zero, Kings, and Anderson lakes to the list of lakes stocked with hatchery fish. The bag and possession limit for rainbow trout in these lakes is five fish, of which only one maybe 20 inches or greater in length. The bag and possession limit for Arctic grayling is five fish, with no size limit. This emergency order is effective for the 2023 season.
• Emergency Order 2-DV-2-01-23 prohibits the retention of Arctic char/Dolly Varden in the Fish Creek (Big Lake) drainage. This emergency order is in effect through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, December 31, 2023.

Don’t forget to purchase your 2023 sport fishing license and king stamp! These can be purchased through the ADF&G online store and printed off from the comfort of your own home. Also, make sure to review emergency orders, advisory announcements, and the 2023 Southcentral Alaska Sport Fishing Regulations Summary booklet for the area you are fishing in before you head out.

For additional information, please contact the ADF&G Palmer Area Office at (907) 746-6300.