Alaska state fishery managers are predicting a strong sockeye salmon run in Upper Cook Inlet next year.
The Alaska Journal of Commerce reported the 2014 forecast by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game calls for 6.1 million sockeyes, or red salmon.
The forecast, released last month, predicts a run of between 4.4 million to 7.8 million sockeyes.
At the 6.1 million level, Fish and Game calls for a total harvest of 4.3 million sockeyes and an escapement of 1.8 million fish to all rivers, mainly the Kenai River.
Upper Cook Inlet sockeye are caught in personal use, sport, subsistence and commercial fisheries.
About 2.6 million sockeyes were caught in regional commercial fisheries this year. About 3.4 million fish was the average harvest between 2003 and 2012.
