In a typical year, smokehouses along the Yukon River would be filled with salmon drying for winter—a tradition Alaska Native families have relied on for generations.
This year, there are no fish. King and chum salmon have collapsed to near zero, prompting the state to ban all Yukon salmon fishing, including subsistence harvests that communities depend on. The crisis mirrors plummeting salmon numbers across the West Coast.
Remote villages, far from road systems and affordable stores, are scrambling to replace a missing winter food supply, turning to late-season moose and caribou hunts.
“Nobody has fish in their freezer right now. Nobody,” said Giovanna Stevens, 38, of Stevens Village. “We have to fill that void quickly before winter gets here.”