Fishing into the Fourth: Where to chase fish this holiday weekend

On Sunday evening, June 28, I drove to Eklutna Tailrace to fish and observe the salmon fishery. I was surprised to see more than 45 vehicles in the lower tailrace parking lot. My immediate thought was, "Wow, people must be catching some salmon."

I grabbed my fishing rod and walked toward the fish-cleaning table located just downstream from the tailrace-Knik River confluence. I saw only one filleted king salmon carcass, from a fish weighing about 12 pounds. I also observed a man and woman preparing to leave with a Dolly Varden measuring about 17 inches. 

Those were the only fish I saw during the hour-plus I spent at the tailrace.

I talked with the couple who had caught the Dolly Varden and with a woman fishing beside them. She had already been fishing for seven hours and had seen a Dolly Varden, two jack king salmon and two king salmon longer than 20 inches caught. She also said she had seen six salmon surface during those seven hours. When I asked whether she had seen or heard of anyone catching salmon other than king salmon, the answer was "No."

Everyone appeared to be having a good time, including a couple of families teaching young children how to cast and fish. In more than an hour on the water, I did not see a salmon surface or a fish hooked.

For the coming holiday weekend, Eklutna Tailrace will provide an easily accessible fishing area with good parking close to the Palmer-Wasilla core area. For anglers lucky enough to catch a king salmon, Eklutna Tailrace, including the Knik River side channel below the tailrace, remains the only location in the Mat-Su Valley where ocean-run king salmon may be legally targeted and harvested.

There also should be an increasing number of sockeye salmon available at the tailrace and Knik River side channel over the Fourth of July weekend. I say that because a guest on my guide boat caught a sockeye salmon on Friday, June 26, from the Knik River side channel below the tailrace. My guest caught it on the second drift with cured salmon roe under a bobber. It was the only salmon the four guests in my boat hooked during the five-hour guided fishing trip. I expect similar "salmon-catching action" at the Eklutna Tailrace-Knik River side channel over the holiday weekend.

Copper River drainage king salmon

On June 23, 2026, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced that, beginning June 25, the annual sport fishing limit for king salmon would be reduced to one fish.

However, king salmon fishing remains open with bait. July 4 often marks the peak of king salmon fishing on the Gulkana River, and king salmon sport fishing opened July 1 on the Klutina River, two of the most popular Copper River tributaries for king salmon.

High or off-colored water can affect fishing success at both locations. I've made quick trips to the Gulkana after confirming good water conditions, only to find drastically different conditions by the time my brother and I arrived. Nevertheless, this would be my top pick if I were looking to catch and harvest a sport-caught king salmon this weekend. I also would try to fish as soon as possible because there is a distinct possibility that sport king salmon fishing may be closed in portions of, or throughout, the Copper River drainage before long.

A free Alaska Department of Fish and Game king salmon permit is required to participate in the Copper River drainage king salmon fisheries this year.

Note: For the second consecutive year, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced the closure of king salmon harvest in the Chitina personal use dipnet fishery before the July 1 opening.

The link also explains that fishing time in the Chitina personal use fishery has been reduced because of low cumulative salmon counts at the Miles Lake sonar site. The farther upstream Glennallen Subdistrict subsistence fishery remains under its standard annual fishing times and harvest limits.

Prospecting the Mat-Su salmon desert for sockeye, chum, pink and coho salmon

The Fourth of July weekend has always been popular with Mat-Su campers, but catching salmon other than king salmon before the second week of July has been uncommon for as long as I can remember. As the crowds I saw at Eklutna Tailrace on Sunday showed, many anglers are eager to get on the water anyway.

If that sounds like you, remember that fishing in the Little Susitna River and Susitna River drainages is restricted to single-hook artificial lures with a hook gap of one-half inch or less through July 13. For the best success, fish closer to tidewater or near tributary confluences.

In previous seasons, I've seen early sockeye salmon harvested from Fish Creek (Knik-Goose Bay Road), Cottonwood Creek (the lower tidal stretch off Hayfield Road, open only on weekends from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.), the Talkeetna River drainage near the Clear Creek confluence (currently open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.) and the Little Susitna River.

Early chum opportunities include Lake Creek near Skwentna, Susitna River tributaries along the Parks Highway, the Talkeetna River drainage and the Little Susitna River. Sporadic numbers of pink salmon can show up at the Deshka-Susitna River confluence, the Willow Creek-Susitna River confluence areas (there are four of them) and other Unit 2 Susitna River tributary confluences during the first week of July. Coho salmon are extremely rare this early but are most likely to be found near intertidal areas.

Through Monday, June 29, Deshka Weir had counted 5,561 king salmon and one chum salmon. Little Susitna River Weir had counted 64 king salmon and 56 sockeye salmon, while Lake Creek sonar had counted 431 king salmon. The latest ADF&G salmon counts are available here.

ADF&G fisheries biologist Samantha Oslund told me this week that the department plans to install the Fish Creek weir on Thursday, July 2. If installation is completed as planned, the first Fish Creek salmon counts could be posted Friday. However, Mat-Su weir updates are typically posted only on business days. Sockeye and coho salmon are the primary species monitored there because both have Sustainable Escapement Goals.

Oslund also said the Jim Creek weir will likely be installed around mid-July. Although no weir-based Sustainable Escapement Goals have been established for Jim Creek, the primary species counted are sockeye and coho salmon, and the weir has been used as an inseason management tool for both.

ADF&G's Commercial Fisheries Division also plans to operate weirs at Larson Lake (a Talkeetna River tributary), Lake Creek and Judd Lake. Larson Lake was installed July 10 last year, while Lake Creek was installed July 18. Judd Lake has not been operated during the past few years. All three weirs monitor Susitna River drainage sockeye salmon and have associated Sustainable Escapement Goals.

The timing of these installations reflects ADF&G's expectation that salmon abundance in Mat-Su streams will begin increasing significantly around mid-July.

Trout

As was the case last week, ADF&G-stocked lakes will likely provide some of the better Mat-Su fishing opportunities over the holiday weekend, although most fish will be much smaller than ocean-run salmon.

Last Sunday, I also noticed a significant increase in anglers using the Kepler-Bradley lake system. Several of the lakes, including three of my personal favorites, are not visible from the Glenn Highway.

Saul Correa of 3 Rivers Fly and Tackle in Wasilla told me higher, turbid water has slowed trout fishing in some Susitna River tributaries. He expects conditions to improve after some drier weather. Stream anglers also should remember that daily bag limits for wild trout in streams are considerably lower than harvest limits for trout in most ADF&G-stocked lakes.

Road tripping for sockeye and personal use fisheries

For Mat-Su anglers willing to travel or camp, the personal use fisheries at Chitina (the more pleasant drive) and the Kasilof River should provide excellent salmon harvest opportunities, especially Saturday and Sunday.

ADF&G also expanded the Kasilof personal use area by emergency order. The daily sport fishing limit on the Kasilof River also was increased to six sockeye salmon because of the strong sockeye return currently entering the river. 

Expect heavy crowds of anglers and dipnetters taking advantage of these liberalized harvest opportunities over the holiday weekend.

Have a safe and enjoyable holiday weekend, and Fish On!

Andy Couch has guided Mat-Su Valley fishing trips for more than 40 years and is a member of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough Fish and Wildlife Commission and the Matanuska Valley Fish and Game Advisory Committee. The opinions expressed in this column are the author's unless otherwise attributed.