Regional Information Report 5J12-03 Juneau Fish Habitat Assessment (Revised) by Mike Bethers, Kristen Munk, and Cheryl Seifert March 2012 Alaska Department of Fish and Game Divisions of Sport Fish and Commercial Fisheries ,­ JUNEAU FISH HABITAT· ASSESSMENT by .. Mike Bethers Kris Munk. Cheryl Seifert Revised June 1995 . Alaska Department of Fish and Game Division of Sport Fish Douglas,Alaska The Alaska Department of Fish and Game administers all programs and activities free from discrimination based on race, color, national origin, age, sex, religion, marital status, pregnancy, parenthood, or disability. The department administers all programs and activities in compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. If you believe you have been discriminated against in any program, activity, or facility, or if you desire further information please write to ADF&G, P.O. Box 25526, Juneau, AK 99802-5526; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4040 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 300 Webb, Arlington, VA 22203 or O.E.O., U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington DC 20240. For information on alternative formats for this and other department publications, please contact the department ADA Coordinator at (voice) 907-465-6077, (TDD) 907-465-3646, or (FAX) 907-465-6078. Contents Introduction ..................................... ~ ....................................................... 1 Species present in Juneau waters . Stream types Developmental impacts Chapter 1: Auke Creek....................................................................... 11 Chapter 2: Auke Lake.........................................................................15 Chapter 3: Auke Nu Creek .................................................................17 Chapter 4: Bay Creek .........................................................................18 Chapter 5: Bear Creek ........................................................!' •••••••••••••••••••••••• 20 Chapter 6: Bessie Creek .....................................................................22 Chapter 7: Bessie Lake .................................................................... ~,. 24 Chapter 8: Bridget Cove Creek .........................................................25 Chapter 9: Campground Lake ...........................................................26 Chapter 10: Pederson Hill Creek (formerly Casa Del Sol Creek) ............... 27 Chapter 11 : Cove Creek........................................................................29 Chapter 12: Cowee-Davies Creek .......................................................30 Chapter 13: Cropley Lake .................................•..................................34 Chapter 14: Crossbay Creek ...............................................................35 Chapter 15:· Duck Creek.......................................................................36 Chapter 16: Eagle Creek .....•......•.........................................................40 Chapter 17: Eagle River........................................................... : ........... 41 Chapter 18: East Creek ........................................................................44 Chapter 19: Elevenmi/e Creek.............................................................45 Chapter 20: Falls Creek .......................................................................46 Chapter 21: Fish Creek ........................................................................47 Chapter 22: Float Plane Lake ..............................................................50 Chapter 23: Gold Creek .......................................................................51 Contents (continued) Chapter 24: Grant Creek ....•........•..............••........•..........•....•...............53 Chapter 25: Hendrickson Creek..........................................................54 Chapter 26: Herbert River....................................................................56 Chapter 27: Johnson Creek...................................... ;.......................... 58 Chapter 28: Jordan Creek....................................................................60 Chapter 29: Kowee Creek ....................................................................63 . Chapter 30: Lake Creek .......................................................................64 Chapter 31: Lake Two Creek ...............................................................66 Chapter 32: Lawson Creek ..................................................................67 Chapter 33: Lena Creek .......................................................................68 Chapter 34: Lemon Creek................................................~ ...................69 Chapter 35: Little Sheep Creek ...........................................................71 Chapter 36: Marshall Pond and Mitchell Pond ..................................72 Chapter 37: McGinnis Creek ...............................................................73 Chapter 38: Mendenhall Lake..............................................................75 Chapter 39: Mendenhall Ponds ...........................................................77 Dredge Lake Moose Lake I Crystal Lake Cashew Lake Louie Lake / Norton Lake Glacier and Moraine lakes I Chapter 40: Mendenhall River................................... ; ......................... 81 Chapter41: Montana Creek.................................................................83 Chapter 42: Neilson Creek ..................................................................86 Chapter 43: Ninemile Creek ................................................................87 Chapter 44: North Tee Creek............................................................... 88 Chapter 45: Nugget Creek ...................................................................90 ii Contents (continued) Chapter 46: Peterson Creek ................................................................91 Chapter 47: Peterson ('Outer Point') Creek....................................... 94 Chapter 48: Peterson Lake .................................................................. 96 Chapter 49: Picnic Creek .....................................................................98 Chapter 50: Riverside Drive Pond ................................................... 100 Chapter 51: Salmon Creek ............................................................... f01 Chapter 52: Salmon Creek Reservoir................ : ............................. 103 Chapter 53: Sheep Creek.................................................................. 105 Chapter 54: Shrine Creek ................................................................. 108 Chapter 55:· Snowslide Creek........................................................... 109 Chapter 56: Steep Creek.................................................................... 110 Chapter 57: Strawberry Creek........................................................... 112 Chapter 58: Switzer Creek.......... , ...................................................... 113 Chapter 59: Tee Creek ....................................................................... 117 Chapter 60: Twin Lakes ..................................................................... 118 Chapter 61: Vanderbilt Creek ........................................................... 120 Chapter 62 Wadleigh Creek............................................................. 123 Chapter 63: West Creek ..................................................................... 124 Chapter 64: Windfall Lake ................................................................ 126 iii I I I , 1 JUNEAU FISH HABITAT ASSESSMENT Mike Bethers Kris Munk Cheryl Seifert immediate Juneau area; and (3) to protect Species present in Introduction fish habitat remaining in the Juneau area by providing management recommenda­ Juneau waters Many areas in Alaska have an tions for the area's streams. abundance ofexcellent fish habitat,large Coho, pink. chum, and sockeye runs of fish, low levels of use, and Table 1 lists common names, scien­ salmon; cutthroat. rainbow, and steet­ exceptional fisheries. In other areas, tific names, and abbreviations of all head trout; Dolly Varden and eastern especially near large population centers, species discussed in this report. brook trout are produced naturally in Juneau area waters. Few, if any, of the productive fish habitat has often been A summary of Juneau area recre~ Juneau area streams contain all of these degraded or lost through development ational effort and the harvest of ·fish without adequate consideration of fish species; however. some species are found from streams is presented in table 2 (fol­ in almost every one of the local streams. habitat needs. lowing page). Please keep in mind that Ironically, demand for fish and recre­ catch-and-release fishing is becoming - Fish species can be classified as either ational angling opportunities is greatest in more popular and there are additional anadromous or resident. Anadromous large communities, yet these are often fish caught which are not harvested. This fish are those that are hatched in fresh the areas which have experienced the publication includes the most recent data water. eventually migrate to sea for greatest loss and degradation offish habi~ available at time of printing (June 1994). some portion of their adult life. and tat.