Area Sport Fishing Reports
Tanana

Archived Sport Fishing Report

June 01, 2023

ADF&G News

You can purchase your 2023 sport fishing license at the ADF&G Online Store and print it off from the comfort of your home. Also, be sure to review Emergency Orders and the 2023 Northern Sport Fishing Regulations Summary Booklet for the area you are fishing in before you head out.

ADF&G is mobile. You can purchase and display your fishing license and king stamp, record your annual harvest (i.e. king salmon, halibut), access sport fishing regulations and locations, and so much more on your mobile device. Download the ADF&G Mobile App today.

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 and angler access tips.

Sport fishing

Local conditions

• High alpine lakes are still ice covered while most of the low elevation lakes are ice-free. Fishing is usually quite good along open water shoreline areas just after ice-out and as the water temps warm.
• The rivers are high and muddy as mountain snows continue to melt and interior rain from the past week has some rivers near flood stage.
• Most of the river boat launches are ice-free, although some remain soft and muddy.

Stocked lakes

• Staff at the Ruth Burnett Sport Fish Hatchery in Fairbanks began stocking lakes in the the Tanana River drainage on May 19 and will continue through mid-June as more remote areas on the interior highways become accessible. Through May 26 a total of 7,155 Arctic char and 40,259 rainbow trout have been stocked into 30 lakes around the Fairbanks and Delta Junction area. Try fishing small pieces of shrimp under a bobber, flashy spoons, or spinners to entice fish to bite.
• For a complete list of stocked lakes in the Interior and statewide, check out the Alaska Lake Database. You can see when lakes were stocked, how many fish were stocked and what kind of fish were stocked.

Arctic grayling

• The high, muddy water will make fishing for Arctic grayling and other species in most local rivers a challenge until the water and debris clears.
• Anglers are catching Arctic grayling in the spring-fed Delta Clearwater River near Delta Junction. More grayling are moving into the river daily so fishing should only get better as the weather warms and insects begin to emerge.

Northern pike

• Northern pike fishing in the Tolovana River drainage, including Minto Flats, Minto Lakes and the Chatanika River, opened on June 1 to protect spawning northern pike. The bag and possession limit for northern pike in those waters has been reduced from 5 fish a day to 2 fish a day, only one of which may be 30 inches or longer. The water levels in Minto Flats are high and there is limited to dry land available for onshore use and/or camping.
• Northern pike fishing in waters that are open to fishing can be productive at this time of year. Try big, flashy spoons to attract their attention.
• As a reminder, Harding Lake is closed to all pike fishing, including catch and release, and will remain closed for the summer.

Lake trout/Arctic char

• Harding Lake is ice free. Lake trout and Arctic char fishing can be good early in the season as these fish will often be near the surface.

Burbot

• Burbot fishing downstream from the mouths of tributaries in the Tanana is great this time of year. Try fishing bait on the bottom of the river in back eddy areas and slow-moving waters in the mainstem of the Tanana River. Bait is currently not allowed in any tributaries of the Tanana River due to the closure of the king salmon fishery this summer

Emergency Orders

Please review the Emergency Orders and Advisory Announcements below in their entirety before heading out on your next fishing trip:

• Emergency orders 3-KS-U-6-23 and 3-CS-U-7-23 issued March 29^th closed the sport fishery for king and chum salmon in all flowing waters of the Tanana River drainage effective April 5th. In addition, the use of bait is prohibited in all Tanana River tributaries through September 30.
• Emergency order 3-R-U-08-23 issued April 24 restricts Kimberly Lake to catch-and-release fishing only for all fish species due to PFAS contamination. Any fish caught while sport fishing in Kimberly Lake must be released immediately.
• Emergency order3-NP-U-10-23 issued May 1 reduces the bag and possession limit for northern pike in all lakes and flowing waters of the Minto Flats area to two fish, only one of which may be 30 inches or longer, effective from June 1 – October 14.

Additional info

• Both the Delta and Fairbanks offices have fishing rods to loan out as part of the ADF&G Rod Loaner Program. All you need is a current sport fishing license (for resident anglers 18 and older and non-residents 16 or older) to borrow a rod. You’ll have to provide your own tackle but rods are free of charge.
• Be sure to follow the ADF&G Sport Fishing Interior Alaska Facebook page to get the most current information about fishing in the area.
• Check out ADF&G’s public use cabin reservation system to see about renting a free public use cabin on one of five different stocked lakes in the Delta Junction area, as well as George Lake.
• The Tanana Valley Fisheries Center in the Ruth Burnett Sport Fish Hatchery at 1150 Wilbur Street in Fairbanks is open to the public Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Stop in to say hi and see what’s growing in the hatchery.
• Don’t forget to bring your 2023 sport fishing license. Help maximize social distancing by purchasing your sport fishing license at the ADF&G Online Store and printing it off from the comfort of your home. Also, be sure to review Emergency Orders and the 2023 Northern Sport Fishing Regulations Summary Booklet for the area you are fishing in before you head out.

For More Information

Call the Fairbanks office at (907) 459-7228 or the Delta Junction office at (907) 895-4632.