THE SALMON AND SALMON FISHERIES OF ALASKA. 
143 
This cannery commences to pack when the ice leaves the inlet so tliat the nets 
and traps can be used, usually about May 135, and closes about August 14. The first 
catch consists of king salmon and redfish, the latter in small numbers, but the com- 
bined product is sufficient to yield 50 to 100 cases a day. By July 1 the cannery 
generally has a pack of 8,000 to 9,000 cases, of which two-thirds are king salmon and 
the rest redfish. During July they expect to pack from 19,000 to 25,000 cases, of 
which 2,000 cases are king salmon, 2,000 cases cohoes, the remainder redfish; in 
August, to the 14th, they count on from 2,000 to 4,000 cases, nearly all of which are 
cohoes. 
The height of the run of the different species is as follows: King salmon, from 
June 10 to 27; redfish, from June 1 to July 25; cohoes, from July 20 until after the 
cannery closes; and humpbacks from July 15 to August 10. 
The cannery conducts all its fisheries, using traps and gill nets. The gill nets are 
used in the inlet by drifting in the strong tidal currents — on the eastern side from 
Anchor Point to the East Foreland, and on the western side from Kalgin Island to 
Tyonek (see Chart B). The current is very strong, so that the boats drift rapidly. 
The water is not clear. 
Five traps are used in the vicinity of Kussilof and three near Kenai. They arebuilt 
in the usual way, with long leaders from the shore to deflect the fish into the square or 
heart at the end, which is in deeper water. They are driven in the spring and pulled 
up when the cannery closes, as no piling would stand the ice which moves in great 
masses in the inlet during the spring. 
The records of 1896 may give a general idea of the relative value of gill nets and 
traps in Cook Inlet. Of king salmon, 33 per cent were taken in traps and 67 per cent 
in gill nets; redfish, 87 per cent in traps and 13 per cent with gill nets; ^cohoes, nearly 
all in gill nets; humnbacks, nearly all in traps. 
OTHER LOCALITIES IN COOK INLET REGION. 
Mr. C. D. Ladd operates a saltery a short distance above Tyonek. About 100 
barrels for local use would represent the total output in 1897. 
On the western shore, below Tyonek, three streams of considerable size are said 
to empty into Cook Inlet. These streams are no doubt known to the cannerymen, as 
the gill-net fishermen drift their nets from Kalgin Island to Tyonek. The fish value 
of the district is fairly well known, except in Kamishak Bay, which is difficult of 
access and is reported to be foul and dangerous to navigate. 
Two large rivers empty into Cook Inlet on the northern shore beyond the Korth 
Foreland — the Shushitna and the Knik; the former runs redfish and the latter king 
salmon. Very little is known of these localities. 
