Great News for Alaska King Salmon fishermen. The Nushagak river is one of the most famous salmon fisheries in the world, yet many sportsmen have yet to hear about it. Known for the largest King Salmon runs anywhere in the world, anglers are discovering that a trip to this angler's paradise means angling opportunities that go far beyond an angler's expectations. The Nushagak is a salmon fishery beyond belief, with 90,000 to 150,000 king salmon from 15 to 50 pounds returning each year. It is not uncommon to hook over 40 king salmon in a day. In 2006, according to the Alaska Fish & Game forecast, the Nushagak river is expecting the best fishing year in over a decade.

A total of 221 thousand Chinook salmon were forecast to return to the Nushagak River in 2006. This forecast is 39% higher than the 10-year mean (157 thousand; range of 75 thousand in 2000 to 261 thousand in 2005). The 80% confidence bounds for the for

ecast ranged from 161 thousand to 281 thousand. A run of 221 thousand Chinook salmon can potentially produce an expected harvest of 141 thousand fish. A harvest this size would be the largest harvest of Chinook salmon in the last 10 years and almost 3 times greater than the 10-mean harvest (53 thousand; range of 39 thousand in 2002 to 117 thousand in 1998). (Alaska Fish & Game Web)

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