NOME ROADSIDE FISHING GUIDE 1 Contents Nome’s Roads: an Introduction 1 Fishes of the Nome Area 3 Bob Blodgett Nome-Teller Highway 8 Nome-Taylor Road 11 Nome-Council Road 14 Management 17 Map PLEASE NOTE: Before sport fishing in Nome area waters, please be sure to consult the current year’s “Region III: Arctic-Yukon-Kuskokwim & Upper Copper/Upper Susitna River Fishing Regulations Summary.” You will find fishing regulations for the Nome area in the “Northwestern Drainages” section of the regulation booklet. REMEMBER: Just because a fish is listed as present in a particular Nome area waterway in this booklet does not mean it is legal to fish for that species. ALWAYS CONSULT CURRENT REGULATIONS 2 SPORT FISHING ALONG THE NOME ROAD SYSTEM Nome’s road system is unique in You may wish to pursue other and a great diversity of birds rural Alaska and affords access outdoor recreational activities in may be found along Nome area to a number of rivers that the Nome area. Hikers, roadways. 3 provide excellent opportunities campers, backpackers, wildlife 8 to catch a variety of fish species. 1 The Nome area is known for its 4 large Arctic grayling and the 7 multitude of waters available to the road bound angler. The roads are open seasonally and in some years are not passable over their entire length until July. The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities in Nome, phone (907) 443-3444, can provide a summary of current road conditions. Refer to the section in this watchers, and birders will find Check with the Alaska publication, “Fishes of the Nome many prime locations along Department of Fish and Game Area”, for seasonal availability Nome’s road system. (ADFG), the Bureau of Land of sport fish in Nome area Management, and the Nome streams. Opportunities to view spawning Visitor’s Bureau about areas of salmon and other wildlife such as interest and information on musk-ox, reindeer, moose, bear, recent wildlife sitings. 3 Access: Please respect private land. Do Niukluk River at Council. For a Much of the land adjacent to not litter. Pack out everything complete list of traditional ford rivers and streams is privately you pack in. Clean up after locations, contact the owned. The Sitnasauk Native others. The way you treat the Department of Natural Corporation and the Alaska land may influence your ability Resources, Office of Habitat Gold Company own much of the to use it in the future. Management and Permitting land near Nome. In addition, (907) 459-7289. various village corporations own Vehicles in Streams: most of the land near their It is illegal to drive a motorized Seasons and bag limits: villages and there are many land vehicle (4x4 truck, ATV, Currently, sport fishing is open private mining claims in the area. etc.) in a salmon spawning year round. Seasons and bag The State of Alaska owns the stream. This includes all the limits are subject to change, so water and the floodplain of rivers streams on the Nome road check the current regulations up to the ordinary high water before you start sport fishing. mark and these areas are available for public use. Regulations and fishing licenses are available at the Country The ability to legally access Store, the Alaska Commercial waters in the Nome area without Store, Nome Outfitters, the trespassing is complex and Nome ADFG office, and on line beyond the scope of this at: booklet. To date, trespass for www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/ the purpose of accessing state statewide/licpermit.cfm fish and wildlife resources in the Nome area has not been a For changes to regulations problem, but users of the land system. There are, however, a or for current emergency are doing so at the courtesy of number of “traditional fords” in orders that may be in effect, the land owners. the Nome area where it is legal to check with ADFG or visit: cross a stream with a vehicle. An www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/ example of a legal ford is the statewideEONR/index.cfm 4 FISHES OF THE NOME AREA Females may contain 8,000 eggs. Chinook salmon (also Runs to western Alaskan waters called “king salmon”) Young fish emerge from the have been weak and all the rivers Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, occur streambed the following June in the Nome Sub-district are in small numbers in many Seward and usually remain in freshwater closed to sport fishing for chum for two years before traveling to salmon (check the regulations). It sea. They spend three to five years at sea before returning to spawn. Chum salmon (also called “dog salmon”) Oncorhynchus keta, are common in almost all Norton Sound drainages including most road accessible waters. Peninsula rivers with largest runs Adults usually ascend streams in in southern Norton Sound early to mid July and spawn in streams. The only rivers with August. “real runs” of Chinook that are accessible from the road system Young fish emerge from the are the Fish, Niukluk and Pilgrim streambed the following June rivers, but even here the run sizes and travel directly to salt water are only a few hundred fish. where they remain for three to is likely that sport fishing for five years before returning to chum will reopen when runs Adults ascend rivers in June to their home river to spawn. increase. spawn in July or early August. 5 they return to spawn. The entire (also called Fishes of the Nome Area Pink salmon life cycle is completed in two Continued... “humpies”) Oncorhynchus years. gorbuscha, are the most common (also Sockeye salmon salmon in road accessible waters. (also called called “red salmon”) They spawn in almost all Seward Coho salmon “silver salmon”) Oncorhynchus Oncorhynchus nerka, occur on the Peninsula streams. They are the kisutch, spawn in most Seward smallest salmon, averageing two Peninsula waters. Adult coho to four pounds in Seward enter Nome area streams from Peninsula waters. late July through mid September with runs peaking during the latter half of August. Spawning occurs from mid September Seward Peninsula in sizable through October. Young coho numbers only in the Pilgrim and emerge from the streambed the Sinuk rivers, where they spawn in Salmon Lake and Glacial Lake. They ascend to the lakes during late June through early August Stronger runs occur in even and spawn during July and numbered years when runs can August. Young fish emerge the be eight to ten times larger than following spring and usually runs in odd numbered years. spend one or two years rearing in the lake before migrating to sea. Pink salmon enter streams from following spring and remain in They remain at sea for two to late June through early July and freshwater to rear for one or two three years before returning to spawn in July or August. Young years. They move to salt water their home river or lake to fish emerge from the streambed in the spring where they remain spawn. Small numbers of the following spring and travel for only one year before sockeye occur in most Seward directly to sea where they returning as adults to spawn at Peninsula rivers. remain until the next year when three to four years of age. 6 mammals. In the Nome area, streambed the following spring. Fishes of the Nome Area Arctic grayling grow rapidly Young fish rear in freshwater Continued... until becoming mature and may from two to five years before reach 17 inches in length by age first migrating to sea at about six Arctic grayling Thymallus seven or eight. Nome area inches in length. They make arcticus, occur in most Seward grayling may live for 30 years annual spring migrations to feed Peninsula rivers. They are a and reach a large size. Because in salt water, and return to fresh most populations are composed water each fall where they remain of a high proportion of old, until the following spring. Dolly large fish, they can easily be Varden make two to four annual over-fished, and do not recover migrations between fresh and salt quickly. This is why the bag water before returning to their limits restrict the harvest of large home river to spawn. Some may (spawning-sized) grayling in all remain in a river all summer (not easily accessible waters. traveling to sea) during the year freshwater species although they in which they will spawn, but are sometimes found in brackish Dolly Varden Salvelinus most spend some time at sea each water lagoons. Grayling spawn malma (often confused with year. Unlike Pacific salmon, in the spring and young emerge Arctic char), are locally called Dolly Varden do not die after from the streambed after two to “trout” and occur in most spawning and can survive to four weeks, depending on water spawn several times. temperature. Fish live in the Prespawning Dolly Varden stream for five to seven years usually enter fresh water during before maturing to spawn for the late July or early August while first time and usually spawn nonspawners may return to fresh annually thereafter. Arctic water any time from late August grayling feed primarily on to mid November. drifting stream insects and Seward Peninsula rivers. They sometimes eat small fish, eggs of spawn in September or October other fish, and even small and young fish emerge from the 7 Northern pike spawn in the Lota lota occur in Fishes of the Nome Area Burbot spring in shallow weedy margins many Seward Peninsula waters. Continued... of sloughs and lakes. Young They are predators that feed pike are free swimming within Arctic char Salvelinus alpinus occur only in some small lakes in two weeks and feed on insects the Kigluaik Mountains north of until they are large enough to eat Nome, and are not present in small fish.