Area Sport Fishing Reports
Northwest

June 23, 2025

This report is intended for both the Northwest and the North Slope Management Areas.

Local Conditions

Rivers are open and are running at normal levels in the Norton Sound and Kotzebue area drainages. Conversely, a late-season snowstorm followed by hot weather on the North Slope brought rivers up above flood stage, and most North Slope rivers are still too high for safe fishing or boating. Most lakes in the Norton Sound and Kotzebue areas are open, while most North Slope lakes are ice covered with open leads around the perimeter.

Sport Fishing

Resident Species

• Fishing for Arctic grayling and Dolly Varden has been very good in Norton Sound streams. Smolt imitation flies work best, but small jigs and spoons can work, too. Fishing for Dollies has been particularly good on the Sinuk, Pilgrim, Nome, and Unalakleet Rivers. Fishing with dry flies on the Niukluk and Fish Rivers has been excellent for grayling. It will be a week or two before river conditions in North Slope drainages are suitable for fishing.
• Most Dolly Varden have moved out of their overwintering areas in the Wulik, Noatak, and Kivalina Rivers on their way to marine feeding areas, or back to their natal streams to spawn. Fishing in rivers will pick up after July 1 and will stay good through September.
• Fishing for Arctic char, lake trout, and Arctic grayling in North Slope lakes can be good in the open leads along the shore while the water is still cold, but the lake trout and Arctic char will move into deeper water as the temperatures rise later in the summer.
• Northern pike are done spawning and should be nice and hungry. The Kuzitrin and Pilgrim Rivers near Nome are good spots, as are the many sloughs and off-channel oxbow lakes of the larger Kobuk, Selawik, and Noatak Rivers.
• Sheefish begin their upstream migration to the spawning grounds in the Kobuk and Selawik Rivers around July 1, and fish can be caught near the Kobuk River villages of Noorvik and Kiana about a week later. One angler caught a 40 pound sheefish at the outlet of the Kobuk River downstream of Noorvik last week.

Anadromous Species

• Salmon counting projects are up and operational on the Niukluk, Unalakleet, Nome, and Snake Rivers, however, no salmon have been counted so far. Both king and chum salmon have been seen in the nearshore marine waters of southern Norton Sound so it should be any day now.

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-KS-W-04-25 Closes sport fishing for king salmon in all fresh waters from Bald Head to Point Romanof. This closure includes, but is not limited to, the Unalakleet, Shaktoolik, Koyuk, Ungalik, Inglutalik, and Golsovia river drainages. In addition, only one unbaited, single-hook, artificial lure may be used in these drainages. All king salmon caught incidentally in the waters described above while fishing for other species may not be removed from the water and must be released immediately.

Additional Tips

• Because fish typically grow and reproduce more slowly at high latitudes and elevations, please use proper catch-and-release techniques when engaging in catch-and-release fishing in order to ensure the survival of the released fish such as:
  • Use lures with a single hook and crimp down the barb. Do not use bait.
  • Land the fish with a soft net and keep the fish in the water when removing the hook.
  • To release the fish, hold it gently facing into the current or in water without a current gently cradle the fish and move it slowly back and forth until it swims away under its own power.

ADF&G News

You also purchase licenses through the ADF&G online store and print it off at home. Make sure to review emergency orders, advisory announcements, and the 2025 Northern Alaska Sport Fishing Regulations Summary Booklet for the area you are fishing before you head out.

For More Information

Call Northwest and North Slope Area Management Biologist Brendan Scanlon at (907) 459-7268.