Title 5 . Fish and Game

Chapter 58 . Personal Use Fishery

Section 22. Waters; seasons; bag, possession, and size limits; and special provisions for Cook Inlet - Resurrection Bay Saltwater Area

5 AAC 58.022. Waters; seasons; bag, possession, and size limits; and special provisions for Cook Inlet - Resurrection Bay Saltwater Area

(a) Except as provided in (b) of this section, the following are the seasons, bag, possession, and size limits, and special provisions for finfish and shellfish in the Cook Inlet - Resurrection Bay Saltwater Area:

(1) king salmon: may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of two fish; no size limit; an annual harvest limit of five king salmon 20 inches or greater in length, in combination with the waters described in 5 AAC 56.024(a) and 5 AAC 61.024(a) , as specified in 5 AAC 58.024; a king salmon 20 inches or greater in length that is removed from the water shall be retained and becomes a part of the bag limit of the person originally hooking it; a person may not remove a king salmon from the water before releasing the fish; a harvest record is required as specified in 5 AAC 58.024;

(2) salmon, other than king salmon: may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of six fish, of which only three per day and in possession may be coho salmon; no size limit;

(3) rainbow/steelhead trout: no open season; may not be retained or possessed; all rainbow/steelhead trout caught must be released immediately; a person may not remove a rainbow/steelhead trout from the water;

(4) Arctic char/Dolly Varden: may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of five fish; no size limit;

(5) halibut: may be taken only from February 1 - December 31; bag limit of two fish; possession limit of four fish; no size limit;

(6) rockfish: may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag limit of five fish and 10 in possession, of which only one per day and two in possession may be non-pelagic rockfish as defined in 5 AAC 75.995; no size limit;

(7) lingcod: may be taken only from July 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of two fish; minimum size is 35 inches in length with the head attached or, if the head is removed, 28 inches in length from the front of the dorsal fin to the top of the tail;

(8) shark (all species of the orders Lamniformes, Squaliformes, or Carcharhiniformes): may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of one fish; annual harvest limit of two fish; a harvest record is required as specified in 5 AAC 75.012;

(9) king crab: no open season; may not be retained or possessed;

(10) Dungeness crab: no open season; may not be retained or possessed;

(11) Tanner crab: may be taken only from July 15 - March 15, except that when the sport fishery in the Southern District is closed to the taking of Tanner crab, the sport fishery in the Kamishak, Barren Islands, Eastern and Outer Districts shall remain closed as specified under 5 AAC 35.410(c) ; bag and possession limit of five male crab; minimum size is five and one-half inches across the widest part of the shell, including spines; a shellfish harvest recording form is required as specified in 5 AAC 58.026;

(12) littleneck clams: may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of 1,000 clams; minimum size is one and one-half inches in length across the widest part of the shell; in the Southern District, a shellfish harvest recording form is required as specified in 5 AAC 58.026(b) ;

(13) butter clams: may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of 700 clams; minimum size is two and one-half inches in length across the widest part of the shell; in the Southern District, a shellfish harvest recording form is required as specified in 5 AAC 58.026(b) ;

(14) razor clams: may be taken from January 1 - December 31 as follows:

(A) from the mouth of the Kenai River to the southernmost tip of the Homer Spit: the bag limit is the first 60 clams harvested; the possession limit is 120 clams;

(B) on the remaining beaches of the Cook Inlet - Resurrection Bay Area: no bag, possession, or size limits;

(15) shrimp: no open season; may not be retained or possessed;

(16) other finfish and shellfish not specified in this subsection: from January 1 - December 31; no bag, possession, or size limits.

(b) The seasons, bag, possession, and size limits, and special provisions set out in this subsection are localized exceptions to those specified in (a) of this section for the Cook Inlet - Resurrection Bay Saltwater Area:

(1) in waters of Cook Inlet north of the latitude of Bluff Point (59ΓΈ 40.00' N. lat.):

(A) king salmon:

(i) may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of one fish; no size limit; an annual harvest limit of five king salmon 20 inches or greater in length, in combination with the waters described in 5 AAC 56.024(a) and 5 AAC 61.024(a) , as specified in 5 AAC 58.024; a king salmon 20 inches or greater in length that is removed from the water shall be retained and becomes a part of the bag limit of the person originally hooking it; a person may not remove a king salmon from the water before releasing the fish; a harvest record is required as specified in 5 AAC 58.024;

(ii) the salt waters within a one mile radius of the terminus of the Ninilchik River are closed to sport fishing for king salmon from January 1 - June 30;

(iii) in the salt waters south of the latitude of the mouth of the Ninilchik River (60ΓΈ 03.99' N. lat.) to the latitude of Bluff Point (59ΓΈ 40.00' N. lat.), and within one mile of shore, a person may not, after taking a king salmon 20 inches or greater in length, fish for any species of fish on that same day as specified in 5 AAC 58.055(e) ;

(B) Tanner crab: in Kachemak Bay, east of a line from Point Pogibshi to Anchor Point, the open season is from July 15 - December 31 and from January 15 or the beginning of the commercial Tanner crab season, whichever is later, through March 15;

(C) the following waters, within one mile of shore, are closed to all sport fishing from April 1 through June 30, as specified in 5 AAC 58.055(d) :

(i) south of the latitude of the Ninilchik River to the latitude of an ADF&G regulatory marker located two miles south of Deep Creek at 60ΓΈ 00.68' N. lat.;

(ii) from the latitude of an ADF&G regulatory marker located one mile north of Stariski Creek at 59ΓΈ 54.37' N. lat. to the latitude of an ADF&G regulatory marker located one mile south of Stariski Creek at 59ΓΈ 52.98' N lat.;

(iii) from the latitude of an ADF&G regulatory marker located two miles north of the Anchor River at 59ΓΈ 48.92' N. lat. to the latitude of an ADF&G regulatory marker located two miles south of the Anchor River at 59ΓΈ 45.92' N. lat.;

(2) in the waters of Cook Inlet south of the latitude of Bluff Point (59ΓΈ 40.00' N. lat.), to the latitude of Cape Douglas (58ΓΈ 51.10' N. lat.) and east to the longitude of Gore Point (150ΓΈ 57.85' W. long.):

(A) king salmon: from October 1 - March 31, king salmon do not need to be entered on a harvest record and do not count against the annual limit set out in (a)(1) of this section and 5 AAC 58.024;

(B) salmon, other than king salmon: in the waters from the Homer city dock near the entrance of the Homer Boat Harbor, including the entire Homer Boat Harbor, northwest along the east side of the Homer Spit to an ADF&G regulatory marker located approximately 200 yards northwest of the entrance to the fishery enhancement lagoon on the Homer Spit, including the enhancement lagoon, and to a distance 300 feet from the shore, the bag and possession limit for salmon, other than king salmon, is six fish, of which six per day and in possession may be coho salmon;

(C) a person 16 years of age or older may not sport fish in the Homer Spit youth fishery zone, established by ADF&G regulatory markers to include a portion of the Homer Spit fishery enhancement lagoon, during designated youth fishery days, which occur on the first Saturday in June and the first and third Saturday in August;

(D) Tanner crab: in Kachemak Bay east of a line from Point Pogibshi to Anchor Point, the open season is from July 15 - December 31 and from January 15 or the beginning of the commercial Tanner crab season, whichever is later, through March 15;

(3) in waters east of the longitude of Gore Point (150ΓΈ 57.85' W. long.), to the longitude of Cape Puget (148ΓΈ 26.68' W. long.), and north of the latitude of Cape Douglas (58ΓΈ 51.10' N. lat.):

(A) in the salt waters north of a line between Cape Resurrection and Aialik Cape (Resurrection Bay Terminal Harvest Area):

(i) king salmon: from May 1 - August 31, the bag and possession limit is two fish; from September 1 - April 30, the bag and possession limit is one fish; king salmon do not need to be entered on a harvest record and do not count against the annual limit set out in (a)(1) of this section and 5 AAC 58.024;

(ii) salmon, other than king salmon: bag and possession limit is six fish, of which six per day and in possession may be coho salmon;

(iii) lingcod: no open season; may not be retained or possessed;

(B) in the salt waters south of a line between Cape Resurrection and Aialik Cape:

(i) king salmon: from January 1 - December 31, the bag and possession limit is one fish; king salmon do not need to be entered on a harvest record and do not count against the annual limit set out in (a)(1) of this section and 5 AAC 58.024;

(ii) salmon, other than king salmon: bag and possession limit between Gore Point and Cape Puget is six fish, of which only three per day and in possession may be coho salmon;

(iii) lingcod: may be taken only from July 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of one fish; minimum size is 35 inches in length with the head attached or, if the head is removed, 28 inches in length from the front of the dorsal fin to the top of the tail.

History: Eff. 2/25/98, Register 145; am 3/5/99, Register 149; am 6/13/99, Register 150; am 5/18/2000, Register 154; am 7/5/2000, Register 155; am 3/8/2002, Register 161; am 8/24/2002, Register 163; am 12/29/2002, Register 164; am 6/5/2003, Register 166; am 3/13/2004, Register 169; am 12/1/2004, Register 172; am 2/13/2005, Register 173; am 8/14/2005, Register 175

Authority: AS 16.05.060

AS 16.05.251