Area Sport Fishing Reports
Tanana

Archived Sport Fishing Report

August 13, 2020

* Just a reminder to all of our anglers - please do your part to help slow the spread of Covid-19 by following and reviewing the State of Alaska Health Mandates currently in effect. As indicated in Health Alert 010, please wear a face covering and practice social distancing while sport and personal use fishing, and while shopping for fishing supplies from your local store.

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-U-05-20 closed the Tanana River drainage to sport fishing for king salmon.
• Emergency Order 3-CS-U-02-20 closed the Tanana River drainage to sport fishing for chum salmon

Personal Use

Chatanika River Personal Use Whitefish Spear Fishery Permits will be issued using an online lottery system this year. The online application period ends on August 15 at 11:59 PM. To enter, applicants must apply online at the ADF&G Online Store. The lottery application is located in the Fishing & Shellfish Permits section of the online store.

Sign-up for this lottery will be exclusively online. Due to Covid-19, lottery entries will not be issued from a Fish and Game office. Your efforts to use the online system and not show up in person to the office are appreciated. If you have difficulties navigating the website, staff will be available to help you over the phone (459-7357).

A total of 225 permits will be randomly selected during the week of August 17. Successful applicants will receive their permits via email and will need to print and sign them before participating in the fishery.

A current State of Alaska resident sport fishing license (unless under 18 years of age) is required to enter the lottery. Only one online lottery entry per household is allowed, and only one permit per household will be issued.

This year, the fishery will open on Thursday, September 10 and close on Monday October 12. The household limit (i.e. per permit) is 10 whitefish. Sheefish or Arctic grayling MAY NOT be speared or retained.

Sport Fishing

King salmon

King salmon fisheries in the Tanana River drainage are currently closed, and the king run is over.

Other salmon

Current projections from the lower Yukon River indicate that the chum salmon run is coming in very weak, and restrictions to all user groups are needed in order to make drainagewide escapement. The Tanana River drainage is currently closed to sport fishing for chum salmon.

Coho salmon are slowly making their way up to the Tanana River and its tributaries.

Resident freshwater species

Staff from the Ruth Burnett Sport Fish Hatchery have begun their fall stocking schedule. In the past week, nearly 13,000 rainbow trout have been stocked into Interior lakes. Consult the Alaska Lake Database to see which lakes were stocked.

Fishing for rainbow trout, Arctic grayling, Arctic char, and landlocked salmon should be excellent this upcoming weekend. Try power bait, shrimp, various colored jigs, or small flies (i.e. wooly buggers) to increase your chances of success.

With the cold weather and rain that the Interior has had, the larger lakes remain cold, and fishing for lake trout and Arctic char should be good. Large spoons, flatfish lures, and crankbaits work well for trolling.

Minto Flats is still flooded, and there is very little onshore use available. However, effort and interest in Minto Flats has been increasing. For those willing to make the trip, try trolling large spoons or Rapalas in the deeper channels for larger pike. Remember to please crimp barbs and/or change out treble hooks with single hooks when catch-and-release fishing for northern pike - the fish and your hands will thank you!

Burbot are starting to get more aggressive as water temperatures cool and darkness returns. Try jigging or placing setlines at the mouths of sloughs. Herring or whitefish work great as bait, but burbot love lamprey if you can get your hands on some.

Don’t forget to bring your 2020 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 2020 Northern Sport Fishing Regulations Summary Booklet for the area you are fishing before you head out.

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