August 18, 2017

Simply put, Bristol Bay is an amazing place. We are back on terra firma and the 2017 fishing season has come to an end. The river systems in Bristol Bay are literally teeming with spawning wild Sockeye Salmon. Combined, the major river systems; Naknek, Kvichak, Alagnak, Ugashik, Egegik, Wood and Nushagak rivers have close to 19 million Sockeye digging redds, depositing eggs and milt, carrying out a natural cycle that that has been repeated year after year for centuries.

The fishing season itself was glorious, exciting, hectic, frenzied and downright exhausting. Every year the Sockeye enter Bristol Bay in a different pattern and this year was no exception. At one point in early July there was a 4-day period during which the cumulative daily catch and escapement into the river systems exceeded 3 million fish! To put this in perspective; the total catch and escapement for the entire Copper River Sockeye salmon fishery for the 2017 season was around 1.4 million fish. 59 million wild Sockeye returned to Bristol Bay. [caption id="attachment_3386" align="aligncenter" width="800"] At Pride of Bristol Bay our message to all wild salmon lovers is; Savor Bristol Bay and Save Bristol Bay. This year’s wild sockeye fillets and portions are as beautiful as ever. Whether you fill your freezer through one of our buying clubs or have our Bristol Bay Sockeye delivered to your door when we launch our home delivery program this September, every pound of wild salmon we sell will generate a donation to the Save Bristol Bay campaign. The campaign raises awareness, educates and advocates for one of the world’s greatest cold water fishery habitats on behalf of me, you and every stakeholder. So, when your Savoring our wild Sockeye fresh off the grill, don’t take that privilege for granted, and when dinner’s over take a minute and visit www.savebristolbay.org and learn how you can help keep this amazing resource healthy and robust for generations to come.