The Alaska Department of Fish & Game opened waters north and west of Middle and Crow Islands during the second 2015 herring opener. (Map courtesy of ADF&G)
Sitka’s sac roe herring fleet had its second opening on Thursday (3-19-15) — and it was a long, slow day of fishing for a fleet used to short windows and fast action.
The fishery opened at 9 a.m., and closed at 6 p.m. Because the fleet is working as a cooperative this year, there were only about a dozen seiners active on the water. That’s down from the nearly 50 boats that usually participate.
But it was good fishing for those twelve boats. Biologist Dave Gordon, of the Alaska Department of Fish & Game, estimates the fleet caught about 2,900 tons of herring Thursday.
That’s on top of Wednesday’s (3-18-15) catch, which Gordon estimates at about 600 tons.
Altogether, that’s not quite half of this year’s harvest target, which is 8,700 tons.
Fishing so far has been concentrated west and north of Crow and Middle Islands. The open waters were expanded Thursday to include the shoreline of Kruzof Island.
The fleet will likely fish again on Friday, in the same general area, starting at 9 a.m.
The Department is issuing updates over VHF radio, on channel 10.
