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Sockeye salmon are caught commercially with purse seine, gill nets and trolling gear. First Nations use traditional nets, weirs and gaffs; while sport fishers are able to catch sockeye with spoons or bait. Migratory pathways present the greatest availability for catch during runs from June to November.

The main spawning area of sockeye salmon extends from the Fraser River to Alaska’s Bristol Bay. Most sockeye in BC and the Yukon spawn in late summer or fall in lake-fed systems; at lake outlets, in lakes, or in streams flowing into lakes. Major spawning runs are found in the Fraser, Skeena, Nass, Stikine, Taku and Alsek watersheds as well as those of the Smith and Rivers inlets.