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Best chinook salmon lakes in Alaska

29 Alaska waters hold chinook salmon, 20 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 Trout
2. Nunavaugaluk Lake — 525 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic Char
3. Paxson Lake — 89 ft max · Chinook Salmon, Lake Trout, Lake Whitefish, Burbot
4. Chelatna Lake — 410 ft max · Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon
5. Kenai River (Middle) — 15 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon
6. Summit Lake — 214 ft max · Chinook Salmon, Lake Trout, Lake Whitefish, Burbot
7. Tonsina Lake — 295 ft max · Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Lake Trout, Burbot
8. Stephan Lake — 91 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Lake Trout
9. Clunie Lake — 107 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Lake Trout
10. Kings Lake — 89 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Lake Trout
11. Sand Lake — 39 ft max · survey depth data · Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon
12. Otter Lake — 82 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon
13. Anderson Lake — 91 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Lake Trout
14. Memory Lake — 20 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic Char
15. Beach Lake — 31 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic Grayling
16. Prator Lake — 23 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic Char
17. Mirror Lake — 33 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic Char
18. DeLong Lake — 74 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic Grayling
19. Cheney Lake — 57 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic Char
20. Jewel Lake — 50 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic Char
21. Green Lake — 20 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic Char
22. Tangle Pond — 84 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Arctic Char
23. Gwen Lake — 33 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon
24. Taku Lake — 73 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Arctic Grayling
25. Hillberg Lake — 59 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon

…plus 4 more Alaska waters holding chinook salmon.

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: Michigan · Washington · New York