The Alaska Department of Fish and Game estimates fishermen have harvested more than 4.4 million sockeye salmon this season in upper Cook Inlet -- ranking this year's harvest as the second largest in the past decade and ninth largest on record.

"It's been a good year," Fish and Game commercial fisheries biologist Jeff Fox said Tuesday.

Last year, drift and setnet fishermen in the upper Cook Inlet harvested 4.9 million sockeye.

When monetary value is factored into the equation, fishermen had an even better year. With prices for sockeye currently around 90 cents per pound, the total value of the fishery -- with king, chum, coho and pink salmon harvests added in -- could push $25 million. That would rank this year's catch as the most valuable since 1997, when Inlet fishermen netted more than $35 million worth of salmon.

Last year's total catch was valued at just under $22 million, with prices around 65 cents per pound for sockeye.

2005 marks the fourth year in a row that the value of the upper Cook Inlet salmon harvest has increased more than the previous year.

Fish and Game revised its estimated total return for the fishery to a range of between 6.7 and 8.2 million fish. Of those fish, it's estimated that more than 4 million of those were heading for the Kenai River. In response, managers last week announced that the management plan has changed to allow for more fishing time in the Inlet.

With a run of more than 4 million fish, the Kenai River is now being managed for an in-river escapement goal of between 850,000 and 1.1 million sockeye. As of Monday, 870,043 sockeye had been counted by the department's sonar counter.

With nearly all sockeye streams in Cook Inlet either at or above escapement goals, Fox said the idea is to try and let fishermen get as many fish as possible before the end of the season. "We're fishing fairly aggressively," he said.

Fox said the only river biologists are concerned with right now is the Yentna, which is lagging behind its escapement goal of 75,000 sockeye. As of Monday, only 24,962 sockeye had passed into the Yentna.