Caleb Gray wasn't sure the 34-pound king he caught the first weekend of the 70th Sitka Salmon Derby would stay at the top of the leader board through the final weekend.

The 9-year-old was at the weigh-in barge - "nervous and excited" - as the clock counted down on June 1. When it hit 7 p.m., derby officials invited him to sound the horn, securing his title and the $20,000 prize in the Sitka Sportsman's Association annual event.

"I asked him if he'd ever seen $20,000 before," said John McCrehin, Sitka Sportsman's Association president and derby chair, now in his 25th year of working the derby.

Caleb stands poised to enter derby history as one of only four repeat winners. He won the contest two years ago.

Over the five days of fishing, 312 fish were turned in by 155 people. Entries weighed an average of 15 pounds, a pound up from last year, said Marsha Lysons, ladder chairman.

Caleb caught his derby-winning fish on the third day of the derby on May 26. Both weekends he was fishing with his mom Keri, dad Kenny and younger sister Chloe, 2, aboard the family's 29-foot boat, Relentless.

While he may not have seen $20,000 before, he knows it may be enough money to go on a vacation to Hawaii, where he hopes to learn to snorkel.

Some of the prize money will help cover derby fishing costs as well, and the family would like to set aside some of the money in a savings account for Caleb, his mom said.