June 2025 Alaska Fishing Reports
June is our best month for catching king (Chinook) salmon in the Mat-Su Valley between Anchorage and Denali National Park. We are guiding king salmon fishing trips in June 2025 to Knik River side-channel below Ekltuna Tailrace.
Scroll Down for the Most Recent Fishing Reports:
June 2, 2025 — I guided a family group with 2 adults, and 4 kids ranging in age from 6 – 14 years old, and we decided on a Deshka River trip targeting rainbow trout and grayling in hopes of keeping the kids interest up during the trip. The family wants to see a moose, and dad spotted a cow moose along the bank before we had even reached the first spot we intended to fish. As we motored closer everyone could also see the young calf moose lagging behind its mother. During the trip the group also spotted several bald eagles, arctic terns, and ducks. Deshka River was quite high following recent rain events, bur remained clear and fishable. We stopped along the river at a gravel bar, where they learned how to cast and present #2 Mepps Spinners on light a light spinning rod. At this first stop one of the older girls hooked and battled with a fish she believed was a trout, before losing it. The youngest girl shortly after hooked and landed what turned out to be a small king salmon perhaps 5 0r 6 pounds. From that point on, the youngest girl became engaged and fished diligently for the remainder of the trip. She ended up catching 3 of the 4 fish caught by the family during the trip. The father caught the other fish. 3 fish were caught on a #2 Mepps Spinner and 1 fish was caught on a 3.0 Maglip Flatfish. The family caught 2 king salmon jacks and 2 small king salmon of about 6 pounds. Everyone got considerably better at casting and presenting the small #2 Spinners during the trip, but hook ups were limited while fishing with small lures in high water. All the fish were released quickly after landing without removing them from the water. Although we did not fish near the Deshka River/ Susitna River confluence, we did see several fish that appeared to be smallish king salmon surfacing as we boated past. It appears that perhaps most of the fish now available at Deshka River may be king salmon, and since king salmon fishing is closed at Deshka River I do not intend to guide additional trips to this location for a while.
Our First King Salmon Harvested in 2025. June 7, 2025 — I guided a group of 5 guests to the Knik River side-channel on an afternoon king salmon trip. We saw bald eagles during the trips and also saw a few salmon surfacing. One of the guests caught and harvested a king salmon of about 10 -12 pounds while drifting Fire Cured salmon roe under an ESB Bobber. When we returned back to the launch site I saw another angler with a king salmon of similar size that had been caught.
June 8, 9, 10, 11 — My wife, some additional family members, and a couple friends went on an annual camping / fishing trip we’ve been making for the past 5 or 6 years. All of us caught at least one salmon during the trip, and there was considerable gear cleaning and items to put away after we returned home.
June 12, 2025 — I guided a morning group of 4 guests on the Knik River for king salmon. Once again we saw some fish surfacing during our trip. We also saw other anglers catch a few salmon, and my guests caught 2 jack king salmon. Both for our fish were taken by drifting Fire Cured salmon roe under ESB Bobbers.
June 13, 2025 — I guided a morning group of 4 guests to the Knik River for king salmon. We saw a large flock of sandhill cranes and some bald eagles during the trip. One guest caught and harvested a king salmon on Fire Cured salmon roe drifted under an ESB Bobber. A second guest caught a king salmon while back trolling with a K-14 Kwikfish.
Saturday June 14, 2025 — I guided a husband and wife from Nebraska on an afternoon Knik River trip for king salmon, and each of them caught and harvested the first king salmon of their life. Both fish were caught by drifting Fire Cured salmon roe under ESB Bobbers.
Sunday June 15, 2025 — I guided an afternoon group of a father, mother, and daughter on Father’s Day for king salmon on the Knik River. Each of them caught a nice-sized king salmon while drifting Fire Cured salmon roe under ESB Bobbers. In addition one of them also hooked, battled, but lost another nice-sized king salmon near the boat. That fish was hooked on a #2 Spin-N-Glo with Fire Cured salmon roe fished behind a Jet Diver. We saw a couple sandhill cranes and some bald eagles during the trip. We saw more salmon surfacing during this trip than any other trip I’ve guided this year — and many were good-sized fish.
Monday June 16, 2025 — I guided a father and his 4 sons for king salmon on the Knik River. The father caught a jack king salmon while drifting Fire Cured salmon roe under an ESB Bobber, and also caught a larger king salmon while fishing a #2 Spin-N-Glo with Fire Cured salmon roe behind a Jet Diver. Two sons caught jack king salmon while fishing Fire Cured salmon roe under ESB Bobbers, and an additional son caught a larger king salmon while fishing Fire Cured salmon roe under an ESB Bobber. We saw the ever-present bald eagles during the trip. We saw few fish surfacing during this trip, and most of those appeared to be jack-sized.
Tuesday June 17, 2025 — I attended a Matanuska-Susinta Borough Fish and Wildlife Commission (FWC) meeting considering the borough waterbody setback ordinance. After much discussion the FWC set up a work group to develop our positions on suggested changes to the ordinance, and also set an addition meeting on July 16 starting at 5 p.m. when the FWC hopes to finalize a resolution stating our positions.
Wednesday June 18, 2025 — I picked up my pickup truck after having some work done that will hopefully get it through the remainder of the 2025 fishing season. In addition, I had Pat Donelson with Alaska SEO set up my 2025 Fishing Report pages for the year, and have been working on updating them.
Thursday June 19, 2025 — I guided a morning group of 3 guests on a Knik River king salmon trip. Two guest hooked fish during the trip. One guest hooked a king salmon while drifting Fire Cured salmon roe under an ESB Bobber, but had it get off the hook before she could bring it to the boat. A second guest caught a fat jack king salmon while back trolling a K14 Kwikfish. We saw a few salmon surface, most of which appeared to be small, and we also saw other anglers fighting or landing a few king salmon, but it was a relatively quiet morning.
I guided an afternoon group of 3 guests, 2 of whom had light strikes, but did not hook the fish. One guest had a strike on a K14 Kwickfish, while the other guest had a fish working on a #2 Spin-N-Glo fished behind a Jet Diver. We saw a couple kings get caught in the afternoon. During the trip we also had a noisy pair of trumpeter swans fly over at low altitude. This was a warm day and later in the day the river level appeared to be rising and water getting a bit muddier. It will be interesting to see what the water looks like tomorrow morning, when I am scheduled to run my next charter.
Friday June 20, 2025 — I guided a pleasant family group from Georgia of two adults and two kids. We had a snafu in our meeting place and ended up starting late on a morning trip. As far as I could tell they may have only had a very few bites — if that. One definite bite occurred on a #2 Spin-N-Glo with Fire Cure salmon roe fished behind a jet diver, however the fish was not hooked. We also had a few bobbers go down while drifting Fire Cured salmon roe under ESB Bobbers. Nothing was ever hooked, however, and we were running the baits at various depths, so we never know if the bait and hooks might simply be catching on bottom and dragging the bobber under unless and angler jerks back into the pulsating power of a fish. It was a beautiful sunny morning on the river, and I know some other anglers caught fish. During the trip, however, we only saw a couple other anglers fighting fish. There was a pretty good bunch of anglers in boats fishing the most accessible water in the Knik River side-channel the whole time. The water was rising during the trip, and with the hot weather, I suspect it will continue coming up, with the water getting darker as the water rises from glacier melt. Water is rising on several other glacial rivers throughout the area, with very high water at the Susitna River, Little Susitna River, and further north rapidly rising water on the Copper River.
NOTE: Today the Alaska Department of Fish and Game restricted fishing on the Gulkana River to single hook artificial lures – no bait, and also reduced the annual sport fishing king salmon limit for fish over 20 inches in length to one fish on the entire Copper River drainage. Gulkana is further north than I guide trips, however, I wanted to make other anglers aware of these changes.
Saturday June 21, 2025 — I guided an afternoon group (father and daughter) king salmon fishing on the Knik River. It was a beautiful afternoon to be fishing, and. the father caught a king salmon early in the trip on a #2 Spin-N-Glo with Fired Cured salmon roe fished behind a jet diver. The daughter briefly hooked a salmon on the same type setup, but lost it before we could get it to the boat. During the trip we watched a pair of yearling moose cross the river upstream from our boat, as the daughter shot a video of the escapade.
Sunday June 22, 2025 — I guided a morning group of 2 guests, each of whom caught a king salmon. The first fish was hooked on a #2 Spin-N-Glo with Fire Cured salmon roe fished behind a jet diver. The second salmon was caught by drifting Fire Cured salmon roe under an ESB Bobber. During the trip we saw a pair of trumpeter swans, a bald eagle, and several ducks along the river. The river had risen more overnight.
Monday June 23, 2025 — I guided a group of 3 guests on a king salmon fishing trip to the Knik River. The water level continues to rise, and my guests fished the entire charter without catching a salmon. During the trip one king salmon was hooked on a K14 Kwikfish and a second salmon was hooked on a #2 Spin-N-Glo with Fire Cured salmon roe fished behind a Jet Diver. Both fish came off the hook before they could be fought to the boat. During the trip we saw a few salmon surfacing, and fished right where they were located, but could not draw more than those two strikes. While fishing we saw bald eagles, both perched along the river and soaring overhead.
Tuesday June 24, 2025 — I guided a morning group of a husband and wife from Minnesota at the Knik River for king salmon. The river appeared higher again today. The man had one light tap on a #2 Spin-n-Glo with Fire Cured salmon roe fished behind a jet diver. The wife patiently waited for a light biting king salmon to aggressive chomp the bait, hooked up with a great hookset, then did battle with her first salmon, which she landed. They were quite exited about catching a nice-sized king salmon, and took a few pictures which turned out quite well in a brief window of sunshine during what had mainly been a cloudy morning trip.
I guided an afternoon family group of 5 people ( a married couple from Fairbanks, her mother and father, and his mother). They kept their baits and lures in the water throughout the entire trip, and everyone had at least one bite. The young woman caught a nice king salmon on a K14 Kwikfish. During the trip we saw some bald eagles and a cow moose with a calf crossing the river far below us.
Wednesday June 25, 2025 –– Fish Creek and Little Susitna River Weirs — Today I talked with Northern Cook Inlet Sport Fish Manager, Samantha Oslund (Alaska Department of Fish and Game), and she told me the department intends to install the Fish Creek salmon counting weir project on Tuesday July 1, so salmon counts should start becoming available from that location within a week. Samantha said most of the Little Susitna River Weir supplies and field camp have already been transported to the new further upstream location, and the department hopes to get Little Susitna River Weir installation in progress shortly after the Fish Creek Weir installation.
Chinook (king) salmon counts through June 24 at Deshka River Weir have been poor enough that ADF&G does not project the Deshka River Chinook Salmon spawning escapement goal will be attained during the 2025 season. For that reason the Northern District commercial set gillnet fishery was closed by ADF&G emergency order for the fishing periods on Thursday June 26 and Monday June 30, 2025.
Copper River Personal Use Dipnet Fishery — King Salmon Harvest Closure: The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced today (June 25) that the Copper River Personal Use Dipnet Fishery (previously scheduled to allow a one fish king salmon, per household permit, annual limit starting July 1, 2025) is now CLOSED to king salmon harvest AND will remain CLOSED to king salmon harvest for the remainder of the 2025 season. Quoted directly from ADF&G’s June 25, 2025 Closure Announcement: “Information to date indicates there is no harvestable surplus of king salmon available beyond those projected to be taken by subsistence users and the sport fishery, which has already been restricted.” In a separate commercial fishery announcement also issued on June 25 — ADF&G announced: “The Copper River District will open on Thursday, June 26, for a 24-hour commercial drift gillnet period. Waters within the expanded king salmon closure area will be OPEN during this period.” NOTE: If these ADF&G statements are accurate, it appears the June 26 commercial period AND allowing commercial fishing within the expanded king salmon closure area both jeopardize attaining the 21,000 – 31,000 Copper River drainage Chinook Salmon spawning escapement goal.
I took today off from salmon charters to get other work accomplished. Gary Feaster with Greatland Welding and Machine helped got my boat trailer lights working again this morning, and I intend to make outboard motor oil changes, and continue working on my latest batch of Fire Cured salmon roe. My wife and I are grilling our own wild Alaska salmon for dinner tonight. Yum!!!
Thursday June 26, 2025 — Fish Creek Sockeye Show — Paul Warta called me last night and reported seeing a school of sockeye salmon milling in the floodwater after high tide at Fish Creek downstream from Knik Goose Bay Road. Paul was only able to hook one salmon last night, and it pulled free before he could land it. It is good to know , however,that some of the later arriving salmon (after king salmon) are already starting to migrate into Mat-Su Valley streams north of Anchorage. Depending upon salmon abundances and river conditions, it may not be long before we guide some trips targeting salmon — other than king salmon. This morning I started setting up some rod and reel combinations specifically for that purpose. In addition, I will be building single hook artificial lures — as many Mat-Su salmon streams have a regulatory requirement for 2025 to use a single hook artificial lure with a hook gap not greater than 1/2 inch through July 13.
Friday June 27 — I guided a group of 4 people visiting from Hawaii, and one of them caught a large male king salmon by fishing a #2 Spin-N-Glo and Fire Cured salmon roe behind a jet diver. During the trip we saw a couple bald eagles and several other boats of salmon anglers fishing for king salmon. The water was still high, but water clarity appeared a bit better today.
Saturday June 28, 2025 — I guided a newly wed couple from Anchorage on a king salmon fishing trip to the Knik River today. They drifted Fire Cured salmon roe under ESB Bobbers, and also fished Spin-N-Glos with Fire Cured salmon roe behind jet divers. They kept their baits in the water and fished diligently the whole trip, but were unable to draw one good strike from a king salmon. During the trip we saw several other groups fishing from boats, but only saw one other group fighting and landing a king salmon. We did see occasional salmon surfacing during the trip, and attempted to fish in some of those same locations. The river water level had dropped a bit since yesterday, and water clarity where we were fishing appeared conducive for catching salmon.
We currently have space available to guide a morning or afternoon salmon fishing trip on Sunday June 29, Monday June 30 or morning availability on July 1 — feel welcome to give us a call at 907-746-2199 to schedule a trip or make an online reservation on this website for trips over 24 hours in advance.
Sunday June 29, 2025 — In the morning I built up some spinners and worked on some plugs for salmon fishing. About 10 A.M. I started driving to Fish Creek, and got there right near the high tide. When I arrived one angler already had a nice sockeye salmon. on the bank, however, although I fished through the tide change, neither I, nor any of the 7 other anglers attempting to catch a salmon hooked a fish, while I was there. I casted a #4 spinner the entire time, and did not feel any fish. I did see two salmon surface, and heard another one surface. I suspect more salmon may be coming in on a tide earlier in the morning or later in the evening (this fishery is open from 5 a.m. until 10 a.m. daily. One positive thing about me fishing during the middle of the day — the mosquitos did not bother me at all.
Monday June 30, 2025 — I guided a family group of 4 people who fished diligently for about 3 hours for one brief strike –produced by fishing a #2 Spin-N-Glo with Fire Cured salmon roe behind a jet diver. Unfortunately that fish was not hooked. For the second trip in a row we saw very few salmon surface. The Knik River water level had dropped again, and the plume of Eklutna Tailrace water running along the south bank of the Knik River side channel was exceptionally wide and of excellent clarity for a trip on the last day of June. Fish catching conditions were excellent, except most of trekking salmon return has likely now migrated upstream into Eklutna Tailrace, and there appeared to be very few, if any, salmon of other species available in the Knik River side-channel fishery at this time. I did not see any of the other boat groups hook or land a salmon during this trip. It was a cool temperature trip, and my group decided to go in early, after one trip member became increasing cold.
ADF&G Cumulative Mat-Su salmon counts through June 30, 2025:
Deshka River Chinook (king) 1,304
Lake Creek Chinook 369
Fish Creek Sockeye 1
Little Susitna River Chinook sonar estimate — not available
Little Susitna River sockeye. sonar estimate — not available
For our next fishing reports see our July 2025 Alaska Fishing Reports page.