Terry Umatum of Anchorage takes a deep breath after landing his Anchor River king salmon on Saturday, May 19, 2018 in Anchor Point, Alaska. The Anchor River opening May 19 was the first chance for freshwater anglers on the Kenai Peninsula to catch king salmon. Saturday proved a slow morning for fishing — Umatum said he waited about 5 hours to catch his king — though it’s still early in the season. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s weir on the Anchor River has counted precisely zero kings so far this year, as of Saturday, though the weir is positioned several miles upriver from the mouth. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

The joy of the fight

Terry Umatum of Anchorage takes a deep breath after landing his Anchor River king salmon on Saturday, May 19, 2018 in Anchor Point, Alaska. The… Continue reading

Terry Umatum of Anchorage takes a deep breath after landing his Anchor River king salmon on Saturday, May 19, 2018 in Anchor Point, Alaska. The Anchor River opening May 19 was the first chance for freshwater anglers on the Kenai Peninsula to catch king salmon. Saturday proved a slow morning for fishing — Umatum said he waited about 5 hours to catch his king — though it’s still early in the season. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s weir on the Anchor River has counted precisely zero kings so far this year, as of Saturday, though the weir is positioned several miles upriver from the mouth. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
Seagulls flock to where participants in the personal use dipnet fishery fish on the north beach of the Kenai River on July 10, 2016 in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

Kenai to start using dipnet earnings

Kenai’s city government has made managing the summer dipnet fishery pay for itself. Soon, fishery revenues may pay for other things, too. “What we expect… Continue reading

Seagulls flock to where participants in the personal use dipnet fishery fish on the north beach of the Kenai River on July 10, 2016 in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

Salmon fellows program includes 4 with peninsula connections

As beloved as salmon are across Alaska, they’re also the focus of tense disagreements. The Alaska Humanities Forum is convening a group of people to… Continue reading

Northern District king salmon setnetters stay closed

Subsistence fishermen in part of the Susitna River drainage will be able to harvest a few kings, but commercial fishermen in Northern Cook Inlet will… Continue reading

A hooligan pulled from a gillnet lies on the bank of the Kenai River near the Warren Ames Bridge on Monday, May 14, 2018 in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Look out for hooligan

Spring brings migratory birds, beluga whales, harbor seals and people to the banks of the Kenai seeking the same thing: hooligan. Hooligan, also called eulachon,… Continue reading

A hooligan pulled from a gillnet lies on the bank of the Kenai River near the Warren Ames Bridge on Monday, May 14, 2018 in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
Study reviews potential climate impacts on Kenai River salmon

Fish board denies petition on hatcheries

The members of the Board of Fisheries agree that Pacific salmon hatchery impacts on wild salmon stocks are concerning, but they aren’t clear on what… Continue reading

Study reviews potential climate impacts on Kenai River salmon

CIAA to move controversial nets back into Tutka Bay Lagoon

The much-debated net pens in the main part of Tutka Bay won’t be there this summer after all. Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association will move its… Continue reading

Worker-inmates to be housed in Kenai cannery

As inmates in the work-release program at Kenai’s Wildwood Correctional Complex prepare to go to work at the town’s seafood canneries, the Alaska Department of… Continue reading

Harper Leck, 3, watches as her line and weight sink into the water at an Alaska Department of Fish and Game-stocked fish pond at the annual Sports and Rec Trade Show at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex on Sunday, April 29, 2018 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

A little skill, a lot of patience

Harper Leck, 3, watches as her line and weight sink into the water at an Alaska Department of Fish and Game-stocked fish pond at the… Continue reading

Harper Leck, 3, watches as her line and weight sink into the water at an Alaska Department of Fish and Game-stocked fish pond at the annual Sports and Rec Trade Show at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex on Sunday, April 29, 2018 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
Commercial fishing vessels wait at anchor in the mouth of the Kenai River before a Saturday fishing period Friday, July 28, 2017 in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

Commercial fishermen to open with regular periods

Commercial fisheries managers in Cook Inlet are moving forward with a cautious eye on salmon runs but relatively normal fishing regulations for the summer. An… Continue reading

Commercial fishing vessels wait at anchor in the mouth of the Kenai River before a Saturday fishing period Friday, July 28, 2017 in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

Fish and Game to stock grayling in peninsula lakes again

Peninsula anglers hankering after grayling won’t have to go so far afield in the future — the fish will be available in some of the… Continue reading

Sockeye salmon caught in a set gillnet wait to be set to the a processor on July 11, 2016 near Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

Council works to disentangle state, federal Cook Inlet salmon fisheries

About a year after the North Pacific Fishery Management Council first took up the Cook Inlet federal fishery management plan issue, the definition of what… Continue reading

Sockeye salmon caught in a set gillnet wait to be set to the a processor on July 11, 2016 near Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)
This Monday, Oct. 24, 2016 photo shows the Kenai City Dock in Kenai, Alaska. The city is seeking a new concessionaire to operate the dock’s equipment after seafood processor Copper River Seafoods did not show interest in operating the facility for the 2018 season. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

Copper River to stop operating Kenai dock

Seafood processor Copper River Seafoods won’t be operating the city of Kenai’s dock this year. The company, which has operated the dock’s heavy equipment and… Continue reading

This Monday, Oct. 24, 2016 photo shows the Kenai City Dock in Kenai, Alaska. The city is seeking a new concessionaire to operate the dock’s equipment after seafood processor Copper River Seafoods did not show interest in operating the facility for the 2018 season. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)
In this August 2017 photo, sockeye salmon mill in the pool just below the Russian River Falls near Cooper Landing, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

Salmon habitat bill still milling in House Fisheries committee

With the Legislature closing in on the final day of its regular session, the battle over a bill to tighten restrictions on permits to develop… Continue reading

In this August 2017 photo, sockeye salmon mill in the pool just below the Russian River Falls near Cooper Landing, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)
Mark Hamilton, the vice president of external affairs for the Pebble Limited Partnership, speaks to a crowd gathered for a joint luncheon of the Kenai and Soldotna chambers of commerce on Wednesday, April 4, 2018 in Kenai, Alaska. The Pebble Limited Partnership, which has been working on plans for a gold, copper and molybdenum mine in the Bristol Bay region for about a decade, recently applied to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for a permit with scaled-back plans. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Pebble lays out smaller mine plan

The Pebble Limited Partnership is changing its plans and its tone as it continues its permitting process. The Pebble Mine, a gold, copper and molybdenum… Continue reading

Mark Hamilton, the vice president of external affairs for the Pebble Limited Partnership, speaks to a crowd gathered for a joint luncheon of the Kenai and Soldotna chambers of commerce on Wednesday, April 4, 2018 in Kenai, Alaska. The Pebble Limited Partnership, which has been working on plans for a gold, copper and molybdenum mine in the Bristol Bay region for about a decade, recently applied to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for a permit with scaled-back plans. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
Sockeye salmon caught in a set gillnet wait to be set to the a processor on July 11, 2016 near Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

Commercial salmon harvest forecasted weaker statewide

Editor's note: This article has been updated to clarify that the comment period offered on the federal rule regarding halibut catch limits is post-promulgation. If… Continue reading

Sockeye salmon caught in a set gillnet wait to be set to the a processor on July 11, 2016 near Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)
Fields withdraws name from fish board consideration

Fields withdraws name from fish board consideration

It was a quick dip into the state fisheries politics pool for Duncan Fields. The Kodiak resident on Wednesday withdrew his name from consideration for… Continue reading

Fields withdraws name from fish board consideration
Workers weigh king salmon at Coal Point Seafood Company on the Homer Spit during the annual Homer Winter King Derby on Saturday, March 24, 2018 in Homer, Alaska. More than 1,200 anglers headed out onto the waters around Homer to fish for king salmon, docking again by 6 p.m. to see where their fish landed in the rankings. The winning fish, belonging to Charlie Edwards, weighed in at 24.6 pounds. Second place went to Jerry Huff with a 20.9 pound fish, and third to Janet Donnell with a 20.75 pound fish. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Make way for the king

Though the ice is barely out, the Homer harbor buzzed with activity on Saturday as anglers hit the water for king salmon. The Homer Chamber… Continue reading

Workers weigh king salmon at Coal Point Seafood Company on the Homer Spit during the annual Homer Winter King Derby on Saturday, March 24, 2018 in Homer, Alaska. More than 1,200 anglers headed out onto the waters around Homer to fish for king salmon, docking again by 6 p.m. to see where their fish landed in the rankings. The winning fish, belonging to Charlie Edwards, weighed in at 24.6 pounds. Second place went to Jerry Huff with a 20.9 pound fish, and third to Janet Donnell with a 20.75 pound fish. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Fish board takes on hatchery issues

Editor's note: This article has been updated to clarify that the board of fisheries did not form a formal committe on hatcheries but rather agreed… Continue reading

Walker nominates 2, including fish board chair, to federal fish council

Gov. Bill Walker has nominated two Alaskans for the North Pacific Fishery Management Council — one a current member and one the chairman of the… Continue reading