Fast start for the Copper River

Yesterday's Copper River season opener produced an estimated 43,000 sockeye salmon, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game reports.

That's way above the projected harvest of 14,900 sockeye for the 12-hour period.

Fishermen also took 1,100 Chinook, the department said.

Copper River salmon season opens May 16!

More details in this announcement from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

Go time for salmon!

The famed Copper River salmon fishery opens for the season at 7 a.m. Monday with a 12-hour period.

The Copper River fishery marks the start of a new salmon year in Alaska.

Best of luck to all gillnetters, and please stay safe!

Another slow start at the Copper River

Monday's 12-hour season opener in the Copper River District produced 12,800 sockeye salmon and 2,700 Chinook, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game reported.

"This compares to a projected harvest of 20,700 sockeye salmon for this period," the department said.

Driftnetters get another 12-hour crack at the fish beginning at 7 a.m. Thursday.

Salmon season is nearly here!

The Copper River District will open for the season at 7 a.m. May 16, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced.

Halibut time! Sablefish too!

The halibut season opens at noon local time Saturday.

The open comes a good bit earlier than last year, when the halibut fishery started on March 14.

The sablefish season also opens at noon tomorrow.

Copper River to open May 16

Here's the announcement.

It's go time at Togiak

Herring have arrived at Togiak and the fishery is set to open at 6 tonight.

It's on at Togiak!

The Togiak sac roe herring fishery opened at 8 p.m. tonight.

Here's the official announcement.

The quota is enormous at 29,012 tons.

Off and ... jogging!

KCAW Raven Radio reports the Sitka sac roe herring fishery has begun, and the normally combative seiners are fishing as a co-op.

Copper River starts slow

Thursday's 12-hour season opener at the Copper River produced an estimated catch of 27,700 sockeye salmon and 1,000 Chinook, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game reports.

The department had anticipated a catch of 33,000 sockeye for the period.

Deckboss hasn't heard any price reports but reckons the fish paid handsomely, as they always do at the start of the season.

The Copper River District will open at 7 a.m. Monday for another 12-hour period.

It's nearly salmon time!

The Department of Fish and Game just announced the Copper River salmon fishery will open for the season at 7 a.m. next Thursday.

It's on at Togiak

The Togiak sac roe herring fishery opened at 6 p.m. today.

Here's the announcement from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

The quota is an enormous 27,890 tons, but the roe market reportedly is lousy. So it'll be interesting to see whether processors, gillnetters and seiners show much appetite this year for Togiak herring.

Sitka herring opens, fleet nets 5,000 tons

The Sitka Sound sac roe herring fishery saw its first opener Thursday afternoon.

The action lasted two hours 35 minutes.

"Preliminary processor hails total 5,000 tons," the Department of Fish and Game said. "No fishery planned for today to allow for processing of yesterday's harvest."

The quota for this year's fishery is 16,333 tons.

A new era for halibut

The 2014 halibut season opens at noon tomorrow.

This is the first year for the new "catch sharing plan," which establishes a clear allocation of fish between the rival commercial and charter fleets.

We're also entering another season of generally reduced catch limits, as the halibut stock continues to decline.

Here's an announcement from regulators laying out the various quotas and fishing restrictions for the season.

The fishery for black cod, or sablefish, also opens tomorrow.

The U.S. Coast Guard is urging safety among fishermen, and so is Deckboss!

Good fishing, everybody.

Salmon way up north

Kotzebue Sound hosts the farthest north commercial salmon fishery in Alaska. And the 2013 season opens tomorrow.

A good run of chum salmon is expected, and the harvest could reach 250,000 fish, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game says.

The buyer, Great Pacific Seafoods, is putting a strong emphasis on quality this season, requiring fishermen to bleed their catch.

More details here.

Opening day sees big sockeye catch

The season's first shipment of Copper River salmon met with the usual hoopla in Seattle. Alaska Airlines photo

Thursday's 12-hour season opener at the Copper River produced an estimated catch of 82,000 sockeye salmon and 700 Chinook, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game reports.

The department had anticipated a harvest of 36,000 sockeye and 1,800 Chinook for the period.

Another 12-hour opener is set to begin at 7 a.m. Monday.

An Alaska Airlines jet arrived early Friday in Seattle with the first load of fish. The plane carried product from processors Ocean Beauty, Trident and Copper River Seafoods.

A cook-off ensued featuring top chefs from Seattle restaurants, plus an Air Force Reserve chef representing the 446th Airlift Wing at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

Can you believe it?

The famed Copper River salmon fishery opens at 7 a.m. tomorrow.

Springtime is truly upon us.

Good fishing, everybody. And be safe.

Copper River salmon only two weeks away!

The Copper River District will open for the season at 7 a.m. May 16 for a 12-hour period, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game just announced.

Reds carry opening day at the Copper River

Thursday's season opener at the Copper River produced an estimated catch of 155,000 sockeye salmon and 1,100 Chinook, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game reports.

"This compares to an anticipated harvest of 32,000 sockeye and 2,100 Chinook salmon for this period," the department says.

Deckboss hasn't heard a thing about prices. Anybody?

The Copper River District will open at 7 a.m. Monday for another 12-hour period.