Area Sport Fishing Reports
Yukon

Archived Sport Fishing Report

June 01, 2023

ADF&G News

ADF&G is mobile. You can purchase and display your fishing license, record your annual harvest (where applicable), access sport fishing regulations and locations, and so much more on your mobile device. Download the ADF&G Mobile App today! And be sure to review Emergency Orders for the area you are fishing before you head out.

Also, check out ADF&G;s new goFishAk interactive map to discover popular fishing locations and information on species run timing, fishing gear selections, and boat, angler, and floater access areas and tips.

Local conditions

Spring arrived late in Interior Alaska and breakup on the Yukon River is approximately one week later than normal. Subsequently, rivers and streams within the Yukon River Management Area are running high and muddy as snow continues to melt in higher elevations. The Steese, Dalton, and Taylor Highways are open for travel. Driving conditions are rated as fair on the Steese and Taylor Highways and difficult for the Dalton Highway. Drivers should be careful of large potholes and washout sections.

Freshwater Fishing

Arctic Grayling

• Arctic grayling are fairly ubiquitous throughout the Yukon River drainage. Nome and Birch Creeks are popular Arctic grayling sport fisheries that can be accessed from the Steese Highway. In lower Nome Creek and other lower Beaver Creek tributaries, Arctic grayling are concluding late May/early June spawning activities and post-spawning fish will soon migrate to summer feeding areas, which will afford good sport fishing once streams clear. NOME CREEK IS RESTRICTED TO CATCH-AND-RELEASE FISHING ONLY FOR ARCTIC GRAYLING. Birch Creek is also referred to by its Gwitchin’ Athabascan name, the Ikhèenjik (Ih-hey-n-jik) River.
• Streams within the Fortymile River drainage that are accessible from the Taylor Highway will also afford good fishing opportunities once the water clears. Dalton Highway streams are further north and are running high and turbid as a result of snow melt. The best fishing opportunities along the Dalton Highway are between July to mid-September.
• Popular gear used to capture Arctic grayling are shiny spoons when the streams are wide enough and colorful jigs for narrower streams and creeks. Mosquitos are just beginning to appear in the upper tributaries of Nome and Beaver Creeks, Ikhèenjik River, and Dalton Highway streams. Dry flies mimicking these pesty blood-suckers would also be enticing to a hungry Arctic grayling.
• Watch our video How to Fish for Arctic grayling to learn what you will need to know to successfully target Arctic grayling.

Northern Pike

• Northern pike are also concluding spawning activities and, like Arctic grayling, are fairly ubiquitous throughout the Yukon River drainage. Good fishing can be found in slower moving waters like the lower portion of the Ikhèenjik River that crosses at mile 147 of the Steese Highway.
• Other popular fishing locations for large Northern pike are at the mouths of major tributaries that drain into the mainstem Yukon River such as the Dall, Ray, Nowitna, and Innoko Rivers, and Hess Creek.
• Due to the late spring, the Yukon River is currently running high and muddy with lots of debris. Sport fishing conditions will improve for these voracious, visual predators once the water lowers and clears at the mouths of these tributaries.
• Popular lures that fishers have reported success in catching northern pike include buzzbait, booyah, jitterbugs, shiny spoons, and shads. Northern pike have rows of sharp teeth, so be sure to bring pliers and a spreader in order to safely remove hooks, especially from larger fish.

Sheefish

• Sheefish that have overwintered in the lower Yukon River are migrating upstream to summer feeding areas. As the water in the Yukon River drops and clears, good fishing opportunities will be found at the mouths of major tributaries such as the Innoko, Koyukuk, Nowitna, and Porcupine Rivers. Some popular lures for catching sheefish include large, shiny spoons such as crocodiles, pixies, and daredevils, as well as various shads that mimic juvenile prey.

Salmon

• Due to poor run forecasts and subsequent pre-season closures of the subsistence fisheries, sport fisheries for king and chum salmon are closed throughout the Yukon Management Area (excluding the Tanana River drainage) as of April 5, 2023. These closures will remain in place until at least late June and early July when the king and chum runs are assessed at the Pilot Station sonar. If inseason stock assessment information indicates that king and/or chum salmon escapement goals and subsistence needs in the Yukon River will be met, sport fishing restrictions may be relaxed commensurate with run strengths.

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-Y-3-2023 closes the Yukon River drainage excluding the Tanana River drainage, to sport fishing for king salmon.
• Emergency Order 3-CS-Y-4-2023 closes the Yukon River drainage excluding the Tanana River drainage, to sport fishing for king salmon.

Catch-and-release techniques

• Because fish typically grow and reproduce more slowly at high latitudes and elevations, please use proper techniques when engaging in catch-and-release 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 to gently cradle the fish and move it slowly back and forth until it swims away under its own power.

For More Information

For moe information, please call Yukon Area Management Biologist Lisa Stuby at 907-459-7202.