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Best chinook salmon lakes in Alaska

30 Alaska waters hold chinook salmon, 21 mapped with real state-agency depth surveys. Ranked below by size and depth-data quality — open any water to see exactly where to fish it: depth contours, scored spots with plain-English reasons, seasonal windows and bait picks. The king. Deep, cold open water all summer; staged off river mouths in fall. Follows the 42-52°F band.

1. Iliamna Lake — 988 ft max · Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Lake TroutWhy #1: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · 2 public access sites
2. Nunavaugaluk Lake — 525 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic CharWhy #2: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · 1 public access site
3. Paxson Lake — 89 ft max · Chinook Salmon, Lake Trout, Lake Whitefish, BurbotWhy #3: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · 3 public access sites
4. Chelatna Lake — 410 ft max · Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho SalmonWhy #4: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · no verified access record attached
5. Kenai River (Middle) — 15 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho SalmonWhy #5: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · 4 public access sites
6. Summit Lake — 214 ft max · Chinook Salmon, Lake Trout, Lake Whitefish, BurbotWhy #6: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · no verified access record attached
7. Tonsina Lake — 295 ft max · Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Lake Trout, BurbotWhy #7: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · no verified access record attached
8. Silver Bay — 400 ft max · survey depth data · Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Pink Salmon, Chum SalmonWhy #8: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site, 1 carry-in or shore-oriented
9. Stephan Lake — 91 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Lake TroutWhy #9: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · no verified access record attached
10. Clunie Lake — 107 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Lake TroutWhy #10: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
11. Beach Lake — 31 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic GraylingWhy #11: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
12. Mirror Lake — 33 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic CharWhy #12: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
13. DeLong Lake — 74 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic GraylingWhy #13: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
14. Cheney Lake — 57 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic CharWhy #14: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
15. Jewel Lake — 50 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic CharWhy #15: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
16. Green Lake — 20 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic CharWhy #16: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
17. Gwen Lake — 33 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook SalmonWhy #17: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
18. Taku Lake — 73 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic GraylingWhy #18: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
19. Hillberg Lake — 59 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho SalmonWhy #19: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
20. Spring Lake — 30 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho SalmonWhy #20: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
21. Triangle Lake — 85 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook SalmonWhy #21: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
22. Kasilof River — 10 ft max · Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, SteelheadWhy #22: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · 2 public access sites
23. Kings Lake — 89 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Lake TroutWhy #23: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
24. Otter Lake — 82 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook SalmonWhy #24: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
25. Sand Lake — 39 ft max · survey depth data · Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho SalmonWhy #25: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site

…plus 5 more Alaska waters holding chinook salmon.

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When to fish chinook salmon in Alaska

• Spring 5–40 ft — Cold surface water lets kings feed shallow — warm-water pockets near river mouths and the first drop-off hold bait and fish.
• Summer 50–120 ft — Kings ride the 42-52°F band well below the thermocline — deep basins and steep structure where bait schools stack.
• Fall 10–50 ft — Spawning-run fish stage off tributary mouths before running the rivers — the year's best big-fish window.
• Winter 30–90 ft — Immature kings winter deep and scattered; a slow deep troll finds loners.

Also in Alaska: best northern pike lakes · best rainbow trout lakes · best coho salmon lakes · best lake trout lakes · best lake whitefish lakes · best burbot lakes · best arctic grayling lakes · best arctic char lakes

Chinook Salmon elsewhere: Ontario · British Columbia · Québec · Michigan · New York · Washington · California · Idaho