ADF&G Predicts Strong Prince William Sound Pink Run, Average Copper River Sockeye

Alaska’s Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) issued its 2026 forecast for the returning salmon runs in Prince William Sound and nearby Copper River last week, with positive news for pink salmon harvesters this summer and less positive for the wild sockeye salmon caught by the Copper River drift fleet, whose season opens in mid-May for Alaska’s first-of-the-year Chinook and sockeye salmon.
Returns to the Copper River this year are predicted to be “average” for sockeye salmon at 1.455 million fish...
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