Finger Lake stocked with 34,000 chinook salmon

On October 1, 2024 Finger Lake, one of the most popular ice fishing locations in the Mat-Su Valley, was stocked 4 times with a total of over 29,000 Chinook Salmon, averaging 9.4 inches in length, according to a stocking search on the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) website. In addition, Matanuska Lake was stocked with over 5,000 similar-sized Chinook Salmon on October 3 and 4. For more, see here.

Finger Lake has a State Parks’ access site with parking spaces and a low-gradient boat ramp providing driving access onto the lake — something that should only be utilized with caution later in the winter, and only after the ice thickness has been checked. One thing to remember about ice thickness on frozen water bodies: ice thickness can vary, by a considerable amount, in only a few feet of horizontal distance. Years ago my father drove us out across the ice on Finger Lake to go ice fishing, but since I started purchasing my vehicles, I’ve always chosen to park on the shore and walk out to ice fishing locations. I’ve had to push a vehicle out of an icy or snowed-in parking spot a few times, but I’ve never had an issue with my vehicle on a frozen-over Mat-Su lake or river — and I intend it to stay that way.

Matanuska Lake also has reasonable access and plenty of parking spaces, however, walking to and from the ice require some downhill and uphill walking, that can get considerably more challenging, when conditions are icy. Matanuska Lake is also located along that part of the Glenn Highway currently under construction, so additional caution may be required turning off or back onto the highway. Nothing major, but a couple considerations I keep in mind.

These two stocked lakes will provide at least a few people some open water fishing opportunity before freeze up, but they were primarily stocked to provide ice fishing catch and harvest opportunity, once ice has formed on the lakes. Consider these two popular locations for excellent ice fishing opportunities before long. Depending upon daily and overnight temperatures — I think approximately Thanksgiving is about the earliest I normally want to go walking out on a frozen Mat-Su lake.

After I submitted last week’s fishing column, an individual sent me a picture of a large school of fish in a shallow area of a popular Mat-Su Valley core -area stocked lake that has been getting very light fishing pressure lately. Another friend told me about a fish -catching trip he took on a stocked Wasilla-area lake in the past week. For both of these reasons, I anticipate there should be some excellent ice fishing opportunities for harvestable pan-sized (or larger) fish on Mat-Su lakes after the colder weather arrives.

ADF&G Staff Comments on Agenda Change Requests

In multiple columns I’ve mentioned Agenda Change Request (ACR)#2 which requests the Board of Fisheries (BOF) designate Susitna River Chinook salmon (drainage-wide) as a Stock of Yield Concern and develop a regulatory action plan to address the issue. With no inriver sport Chinook harvest during 5 out of the past 7 years for the entire Susitna River drainage, and ADF&G estimated sport harvest reduced by 99% comparing the 5-year period 2000 - 2004 to the most recent 5-year period with harvest estimates 2019 -2023 — ADF&G refuses to admit Susitna River Chinook Salmon could qualify as a Stock of Yield Concern, or recognize there may be a legitimate conservation purpose for ACR 2.

Similarly, ACR #3 requests the BOF designate Little Susitna River coho salmon as a Stock of Yield Concern and develop regulatory action plan to address the concern. Little Susitna River coho salmon stock has long been used by ADF&G as an abundance indicator for coho salmon throughout Northern Cook Inlet (including the Susitna River drainage before establishment of the Deshka River coho salmon spawning escapement goal). ACR #3 demonstrates, using ADF&G harvest estimates, that Little Susitna inriver yield (harvest) for coho salmon has declined by over 85% comparing the period of 2000 - 2004 with average annual coho harvest of 17, 137 fish to 2019 - 2023, the most recent 5-year period with annual harvest estimates averaging 2,449 coho per year. Once again, ADF&G refuses to admit Little Susitna River coho salmon could qualify as a Stock of Yield Concern — and refuses to recognize there could be a legitimate conservation purpose for ACR 3.

See all timely submitted ACRs here.

See staff comments the ACRs here.

Note: Regulatory language in 5AAC 21.355 defines, “A stock of yield concern is a concern arising from the chronic inability, despite the use of specific management measures, to maintain specific yields, or harvestable surpluses, above a stock's escapement needs; a yield concern is less severe than a management concern.”

The BOF will decide at its October 29 and 30 work session at the Egan Convention Center in Anchorage whether to schedule ACR 2 and / or ACR 3 to be heard at one of the BOF fisheries meetings this winter.

Fish On!