Blind River Rapids looking toward the mouth of Blind Slough, where freshwater sport fishing for king salmon would be open under the proposal 159. (Photo: Hannah Flor/KFSK)

Several proposals headed to the Alaska Board of Fisheries next week would change how the state manages a popular run of king salmon near Petersburg. 

The town’s Fish and Game Advisory Committee is backing a trio of proposals that would reduce bag limits. The committee also wants residents to have more fishing opportunities than tourists when king numbers are low. Specifically, king salmon from the Crystal Lake Hatchery. Those salmon return every year to Blind Slough, about 17 miles south of town.

Each year, the hatchery needs a specific number of returning kings, or broodstock, in order to raise fish for future salmon runs. When returns were low last summer, the state closed the freshwater fishery but kept the saltwater open, per current regulations. The closure angered some local sport fishermen who saw it as inequitable, since initially, the saltwater fishery near the mouth of the slough wasn’t affected. State regulations close freshwater king fishing if the projected returns dip below 2,000 fish. If it gets worse, to 1,000 fish, saltwater fishing for kings is also automatically closed.

Sport fishermen pointed out that freshwater fishing doesn’t require a boat, making it more accessible to the public. They said the current management plan favors tourists from out of state who stay at lodges and fish for kings in the nearby saltwater.

Petersburg’s advisory committee backed proposal 159, which would allow saltwater and freshwater anglers to keep just one king a day if projected returns dip below 2000 fish. And that’s only if they’re Alaska residents. Tourists could also keep one king in saltwater, but none in freshwater. Even when higher returns are expected, the proposed plan allows residents to keep more kings than tourists and keeps the distribution fairly even between salt and freshwater resident fishermen.

The proposed plan also changes where anglers are allowed to fish for king salmon in freshwater. That’s because returning salmon can face some tough conditions when they get to Blind River Rapids. The water can be too warm, or too low, and sometimes fishermen catch and release the kings, which stresses them out. The plan addresses that by limiting freshwater fishing to a portion of the slough below the rapids, closer to the saltwater. 

The local committee also voted in favor of proposal 162, which would end sport fishing for king salmon in Blind Slough’s fresh water on July 15 every year. And they voted in favor of proposal 163, which would count king salmon caught around Blind Slough toward a non resident’s bag limit. As it is now, the Blind Slough terminal harvest area is excluded from annual bag limit regulations.

The Alaska Board of Fisheries will consider the Blind Slough proposals and others from Southeast when it meets in Ketchikan January 28 through February 9.