Ole Bates checks fish wheel at Slana after Copper River rises from heavy rains.

We got our turn on the fish wheel this week.  The fish wheel floats along the shore of the Copper River just downstream from the confluence of the Slana River.  The salmon have spent several years feeding at sea and now they are returning to spawning streams in the Slana River drainage. Most of the salmon are sockeye or as they are locally called, Copper River Reds. Continue reading →