Kenai River Dive Net Fishing Now Open 24 Hours

Kenai River personal use dive net fishing is open 24 hours a day until fishing closes at midnight on July 31.

A statement from the state Department of Fish and Game released Wednesday said the liberalization of fishing regulations was effective Thursday night. The area of ​​the Kenai River open to personal-use dip netting remains the same.

According to the release, the department is able to extend the hours of operation for the dive net fishery when it anticipates a late run of Kenai River sockeye salmon exceeding 2.3 million fish, exceeding the escapement goal of 750,000 to 1.3 million for the species.

Since the late run began counting July 1, according to fish counts available from the department, 405,000 sockeye have been counted by sonar, more than in the last four years. Since the dip net fishery opened July 10, between 19,000 and 34,000 sockeye have been counted daily on the Kenai River.

On Wednesday, at the height of the tide, hundreds of fishermen lined the beach or the surf at the mouth of the river. At any given moment, dozens of sockeye could be seen being pulled onto the sand, having their tail fins clipped or being dropped into one of the many buckets and coolers.

Only Alaska residents may participate in personal fishing. Any angler 18 years of age or older must have a valid sport fishing license. A license, valid for the entire household, must also be acquired before fishing. The department says licenses can be obtained from private vendors or at department offices, such as the Fish and Game office in Soldotna. A list of private vendors is available on the department’s website.

Contact reporter Jake Dye at [email protected].