Alaska Administrative Code
Title 5 - Fish and Game
Part 2 - Sport Fishing and Personal Use Fishery
Chapter 55 - Prince William Sound Area
5 AAC 55.022 - General provisions for seasons, bag, possession, and size limits, and methods and means for the Prince William Sound Area

Universal Citation: 5 AK Admin Code 5 AAC 55.022

Current through August 30, 2024

(a) Unless otherwise specified in 5 AAC 55.023, or by an emergency order issued under AS 16.05.060, the following are the seasons, bag, possession, and size limits, and methods and means that apply to sport fishing for finfish and shellfish in the Prince William Sound Area:

(1) in all fresh waters of the Prince William Sound Area, only unbaited, artificial lures may be used from April 15 - June 14;

(2) king salmon: may be taken from January 1 - December 31, as follows:
(A) in fresh waters, as follows:
(i) king salmon 20 inches or greater in length; bag limit of two fish; possession limit of four fish;

(ii) king salmon less than 20 inches in length; bag and possession limit of 10 fish;

(B) in the salt waters; bag limit of two fish; possession limit of four fish; no size limit;

(3) salmon, other than king salmon: may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag limit of six fish; possession limit of 12 fish, of which only three fish per day and in possession may be coho salmon; no size limit;

(4) rainbow/steelhead/cutthroat trout, as follows:
(A) repealed 3/30/2006;

(B) in stocked lakes: may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of 10 fish; no size limit; for the purposes of this subparagraph, "stocked lakes" includes Ruth Lake and Blueberry Lake;

(C) in all other waters not specified in this paragraph: may be taken only from June 15 - April 14; bag and possession limit of two fish, and notwithstanding 5 AAC 75.222, with a size limit of at least 11 inches in length but not more than 16 inches in length;

(5) Dolly Varden/Arctic char: may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of 10 fish; no size limit;

(6) Arctic grayling: may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of 10 fish; no size limit;

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

(8) lingcod: may be taken only from July 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of one fish; must be 35 inches or greater in length including the head, or 28 inches or greater in length with the head removed;

(9) rockfish:
(A) may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag limit of four fish; possession limit of eight fish, of which only per day and in possession may be nonpelagic rockfish; no size limit;

(B) repealed 3/29/2018;

(10) sharks may be taken only as specified in 5 AAC 75.012;

(11) other finfish not specified in this subsection: may be taken from January 1 - December 31; no bag, possession, or size limits;

(12) lake trout; may be taken from January 1 - December 31; bag and possession limit of two fish; no size limit;

(b) Unless otherwise specified in 5 AAC 55.023, or by an emergency order issued under AS 16.05.060, the following are the seasons, bag, possession, and size limits, and methods and means that apply to sport fishing for shellfish in the Prince William Sound Area:

(1) the bag and possession limits for sport-harvested shellfish are not in addition to those allowed under subsistence fishing regulations under 5 AAC 02 or under personal use fishing regulations under 5 AAC 77;

(2) king crab: no open season; may not be taken or possessed;

(3) Tanner crab; may be taken as follows;
(A) may be taken only under the authority of a permit issued by the department; a harvest recording form under 5 AAC 75.016 is required;

(B) may be taken from October 1 - March 31; only male Tanner crab five inches or greater in width of shell may be taken or possessed; the bag and possession limit is twelve male Tanner crab;

(C) may only be taken with pots; no more than two pots per person with a maximum of two pots per vessel; each pot must have no less than two escape rings of no less than four and three-eighths inch inside diameter; a pot may not have any portion of the line attaching the pot to a buoy floating on the surface of the water at any time, except that portion of the line connecting the main buoy to any auxiliary buoy or buoys;

(D) may not be taken in those areas described in 5 AAC 02.236;

(E) the Tanner crab sport fishery will only occur as provided in 5 AAC 35.308(d);

(4) Dungeness crab: no open season; may not be taken or possessed;

(5) shrimp may be taken as follows:
(A) may be taken from April 15 - September 15; no bag, possession, or size limits;

(B) no more than five pots per person, with no more than five pots per vessel, may be used to take shrimp;

(C) all shrimp pots must have at least two adjacent vertical sides, or near-vertical sides, excluding tunnels, completely composed of uncovered net webbing or rigid mesh; pots that do not have a definable side, including round pots, must have net webbing or rigid mesh panels covering a minimum of 50 percent of the vertical, or near-vertical, surface area of the pot; the net webbing or rigid mesh on all pots must be large enough to allow the unaided passage of a maximum 12-inch long, seven-eighths inch diameter, round wooden peg without deforming the opening, except for the salvage;

(D) only under a permit issued by the department; a harvest recording form under 5 AAC 75.016 is required;

(6) razor clams: may be taken from January 1 - December 31, in the waters of Prince William Sound east of 146º W. long. and south of a line from the southernmost tip of Point Bentinck to the southernmost tip of Point Whitshed; no bag or possession limits; only razor clams four and one-half inches or greater in shell length may be retained; a harvest recording form is required as specified in 5 AAC 75.016;

(7) shellfish not specified in this subsection: may be taken January 1 - December 31; no bag, possession, or size limits.

(c) Beginning January 1, 2020, a person sport fishing from a vessel and the operator of the vessel must comply with the requirements of 5 AAC 75.020(f).

Authority:AS 16.05.060

AS 16.05.251

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