Hunting & Fishing

Bethel’s shooting range provides a place for hunters to sight in their rifles before moose hunting, for kids to learn gun safety, and for law enforcement to practice gun training. It’s also a place where Bethel Sportsman’s Club members compete for trophies. In late August the club held a .22 rifle shooting competition where Travis Burks took first place.

Increased control over natural resources, like fish, is a top priority for Kuskokwim tribes. One way to move in that direction is through collecting harvest data during fishing season, which helps with the difficult job of in-season management. KYUK met with the river’s newest data recruits to talk about this crucial job.

Do the people along the Kuskokwim River want more salmon in its waters? If so, what measures would they allow to make that happen and what would they prohibit? These are questions that regional salmon management and fishing groups are asking the public to answer. Proponents say that doing so will strengthen residents’ control over their fish stocks.

With gillnet fishing limited to only a few days on the Kuskokwim for most of June and July, some people on the river turned to alternative ways of filling their smokehouses. KYUK traveled to Sleetmute this summer where two women were running a fish wheel.