After historic crash, Yukon River’s iconic king salmon run shows early signs of rebound

For the past few years, smokehouses in the Yukon River village of Anvik have sat empty. After salmon populations crashed, dozens of Alaska Native communities along the river faced a stark new reality, one without the fish that fed families and sustained Yup’ik and Athabascan traditions for generations. This summer, though, smoke once again wafted [

By: Max Graham, Northern Journal-Anchorage Press, Alaska Beacon

Outlets: Daily Montanan

Published: August 19, 2026

Words: 1,270

Last Updated: 2 months ago

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For the past few years, smokehouses in the Yukon River village of Anvik have sat empty.

After salmon populations crashed, dozens of Alaska Native communities along the river faced a stark new reality, one without the fish that fed families and sustained Yup’ik and Athabascan traditions for generations.

This summer, though, smoke once again wafted through Anvik, on the middle Yukon some 350 miles west of Anchorage.

The river’s two main species, chinook and chum, …

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