Mat-Su Outdoorsman Show: Friday through Sunday

At a time when fishing through the ice could be an adventure in breaking -through-the-ice disaster, and there are very few streams open to fishing with good access and water conditions, the Mat-Su Outdoorsman Show at the Menard Sports Complex in Wasilla ranks as my top choice for a Friday afternoon, Saturday, or Sunday opportunity to walk, in a warm dry environment, and consider many different fishing, hunting, adventuring activities and located in Southcentral Alaska. This show has been the largest outdoor oriented show, I know of, in the Northern Cook Inlet area for several years now. As such, it provides a significant spring time economic impact to the Mat-Su Valley (especially Wasilla). Although I am not scheduled to present a seminar nor have a booth at the show, I am planning to attend. Howard Delo in his Frontiersman column this week provides a plethora of information about this show, so I will proceed on to other Fishing items. https://matsuoutdoorsmanshow.com/show/

Vehicles Break Through Big Lake Ice

When I talked with Saul at 3 Rivers Fly and Tackle in Wasilla on Monday, he told me about heading out to Big Lake last weekend for a last chance ice fishing trip. When he got to the Southside boat launch and parking area, the Alaska State Troopers were closing that access point as two trucks had broken through the ice. While I’ve been hearing a little chatter about conditions and fishing being reasonable further North at Lake Louise (ice often does not leave Louise entirely until early June), I’ve already sworn off walking on frozen water until next winter.

First 2025 Trip to Eklutna Tailrace

On a warm Friday afternoon (April 4) I took several fishing rods I had built this winter over to Eklutna Tailrace to do some casting and swing some spinners in the current. The road to the lower parking lot was still gated, but all snow had melted from the road. The shaded uphill side of the parking lot still had a small amount of snow that was melting rapidly and creating puddles in the lower parking lot. In the tailrace channel there was a strong current with plenty of water flow coming through the power plant. There was hardly any ice of snow along the tailrace channel, when I was there, and the trail running from the tailrace / Knik River confluence to the upper parking lot across the highway from the power plant was totally snow free as well. There is not much chance of catching fish at the tailrace this time of year, but it is a great place to get out and cast or run a line / lure in open water.

Parks Highway Streams Opening

I talked with Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) fishery biologist Oliver Querin on Tuesday, and he mentioned Little Susitna River was open and flowing downstream of the Parks Highway Bridge at Houston. Oliver also told me the streams further north were starting to open up, and an eager angler had called that day asking about the fishing at Willow Creek. ( I did not ask, but would expect a limited amount of open water and slow fishing this early in the season at Willow or any other Parks Highway tributary streams to the Susitna River). I did however take a look at the Deshka Landing weather cam, and saw a mostly snow-covered photo, with some water overtopping ice in the boat launch, and an open water lead in the Susitna River upstream of the boat launch. Depending on what happens with daily and nighttime temperatures in the next few weeks, it appears we may have an earlier than normal ice break up on the Susitna River this year. https://deshkalanding.com/weather-cam/

Palmer - Wasilla Core Area Lakes

The driving route through the construction project on the Glenn Highway south of Palmer now drops down quite close to Bradley Lake, and I’m sure many other folks have noticed there is a considerable and growing amount of ice-free water right by the road / parking access. Parking is quite limited, but this is always one of the earliest locations in the Mat-Su Valley to produce open water catches of rainbow trout. Along with Junction (Loberg), Lucille, Finger, and Memory Lake this is usually one of the earlier Mat-Su Valley locations stocked with catchable-size trout by ADF&G as well. Oliver Querin, checked the stocking scheduled, then texted with someone at the Jack Hernandez Fish Hatchery. An early Mat-Su Valley stocking could occur soon after good levels of dissolved oxygen are measured in open water. From an efficiency standpoint, the department also likes to run the stocking truck when several locations (lakes) have good conditions for stocking on the same day.

Northern Cook Inlet Salmon Outlook

Several folks have recently been asking, what salmon fishing will be like this year in Mat-Su Valley and Northern Cook Inlet streams? With many Northern Cook Inlet salmon stocks (Chinook and coho in particular) returning in lower abundance over the past since about 2009, and with ADF&G forecasting a large sockeye salmon return to the Kenai River, the number of coho salmon returning to Mat-Su and Northern Cook Inlet waters will likely, once again, be highly dependent upon how ADF&G manages the commercial drift gillnet fishery and the Northern District set net fishery. Northern Cook Inlet coho returns will also be somewhat dependent upon the amount of mature coho salmon returning to Cook Inlet in general. According to ADF&G, the 2024 Upper Cook Inlet commercial coho salmon harvest was the poorest on record — I would not want to bet on beating a record like that — however 2023 was a poor coho return as well, and the recent trend has been below average. While ADF&G has not announced any preseason management changes to better maintain coho salmon escapement levels and harvest opportunity throughout the 2025 season, department staff have been discussing this very topic.

King (Chinook) Salmon

There have been several preseason management changes closing wild king salmon harvest and fishing opportunities throughout Upper Cook Inlet, with many emergency regulations starting on May 1, 2025. The consensus appears to be that all wild king salmon returns to Upper Cook Inlet are far below historical levels, and even without targeted fishing / harvests, many Upper Cook Inlet king salmon spawning escapement goal levels may not be attained again in 2025. Craig Medred recently posted a well-researched column about Kenai River king salmon, and the situation is similar for all wild Upper Cook Inlet king salmon stocks. https://craigmedred.news/2025/04/07/gone-kings/

Expect hatchery enhanced king salmon fisheries to provide some opportunity in Upper Cook Inlet this year, however, with king salmon broodstock running short of egg take goals at Ship Creek, Kasilof River/Crooked Creek, and Ninilchik River last year, expect emergency restrictions/closures could occur on these hatchery fisheries even earlier in 2025 — particularly if there is indication of another shortage of large spawners/female kings.

Good Luck and Fish On!