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Legendary Species · Alaska

Coho salmon in Alaska

Oncorhynchus kisutch[1]

19 Alaska waters whose agency species list names coho salmon. Each links to its water page (gauge, regulations, access map, guides and shops) and to the agency list it comes from.

  • 19waters list it
  • 5destination hubs
Illustration of a silver coho salmon with a blue-green back and small dark spots on the back and upper tail
Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch), illustration by Timothy Knepp for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Artwork: Timothy Knepp, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Alaska waters

Most fished first. A species missing from an agency list does not mean it is absent; this page lists only waters whose list names it (at least 5 are needed for a page).

All Alaska watersCoho salmon: every state

Identification

  • Bright coho have small black spots on the back and on the upper lobe of the tail only, and white gums. Chinook have spots on both tail lobes and black gums.[2]
    What the source says
    “They can be distinguished from Chinook salmon by the lack of black spots on the lower lobe of the tail and by their white gums; Chinook have small black spots on both tail fin lobes and they have black gums.”
  • Alaska's angler tip: coho have a dark gray or blackish mouth with a white gum line, and spots on the back and upper tail lobe in both ocean and spawning phases.[3]
    What the source says
    “Ocean adults and spawning-phase coho have small black spots that run along the back and on the upper lobe of the tail. Coho also have a dark gray or blackish mouth with a white gum-line.”
  • Spawning colour: spawning coho turn a deep reddish or maroon over the whole body, head and tail included.[3]
    What the source says
    “Spawning coho (or silver) salmon develop a deep reddish or maroon coloration that covers their entire body – head and tail included.”

More on identifying coho salmon

Status, protections and rules

As each agency stated them on the date read; a rule applies only where its agency says so. Check the current regulations for the water before you fish.

  • Under the ESA, NOAA Fisheries lists the Central California Coast coho as endangered, and the Lower Columbia River, Oregon Coast, and Southern Oregon and Northern California Coasts units as threatened.[4]
    What the source says
    “We listed the Central California coast ESU of coho salmon as endangered and the Lower Columbia River ESU, Oregon coast ESU, Southern Oregon & Northern California coasts ESU as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.”
  • Alaska describes its coho populations as healthy.[2]
    What the source says
    “Coho salmon populations in Alaska are healthy.”

Water temperature in Alaska

Alaska Department of Fish and Game publishes no water-temperature line for trout anglers that we found. The lines below are the National Park Service's, federal guidance, not a Alaska rule:

  • Under the federal 68°F lineThat is under the 68°F at which the National Park Service, at Grand Teton National Park, recommends anglers stop fishing in the afternoon (“cease fishing at 2 p.m. when water temperatures are likely to exceed 68°F”). Water warms through the afternoon, so check again later in the day: “Carry a pocket thermometer to monitor water temperature.”
  • Stressful for troutAt 68°F the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says rainbow trout “start stressing”, and the National Park Service at Grand Teton recommends that anglers “cease fishing at 2 p.m. when water temperatures are likely to exceed 68°F.” Its advice: “Fish early in the morning while the water temperature is cooler”, “Play and land fish quickly to reduce exhaustion stress” and “Keep the fish in the water as much as possible.”

Sources: High water temperatures prompt fishing advisory in Grand Teton National Park (29 July 2022) (National Park Service); Up a climate-stressed creek (9 June 2023) (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service).

Destination hubs

Hubs that list one of these waters, or that a water page is near: each has guides, shops, licences and trip planning for the area.

Hatch & season charts

Sources

Every fact on this page is our paraphrase of the page cited beside it, read on the date shown. Rules and seasons change: check the agency's current regulations before you fish.

  1. Coho Salmon | NOAA Fisheries NOAA Fisheries, read Oct 24, 2026.
  2. Coho Salmon Species Profile, Alaska Department of Fish and Game Alaska Department of Fish and Game, read Oct 24, 2026.
  3. Alaska's Five Species of Pacific Salmon, Alaska Department of Fish and Game Alaska Department of Fish and Game, read Oct 24, 2026.
  4. Coho Salmon (Protected) | NOAA Fisheries NOAA Fisheries, read Oct 24, 2026.