King salmon derby returns after missing past 3 years

Wrangell’s first king salmon derby since 2017 is just days away from dropping hooks in the water.

The derby opens Tuesday and will run through June 30, ending in time for the start of the long Fourth of July holiday weekend.

The community’s 66th king derby had been on hold the past few years, due to weak salmon runs.

Derby tickets, at $25 each, and the derby booklet with rules and fishing area map will be available this week at Angerman’s, the Totem Bar, Sentry Hardware and the Wrangell Chamber of Commerce office in the Stikine Inn, said Stephanie Cook, of the chamber. The chamber is the derby sponsor.

First place for the largest salmon is $3,000, with $1,500 for second place and $1,000 for third.

The top three kings turned in by contestants 12 and younger will earn $250, $100 and $50.

A special $500 prize for the largest king turned in on opening day has been donated by Svendsen Marine, Cook said.

The largest salmon turned in on Father’s Day, June 20, will win a $250 prize, and two “hidden weight” prizes of $250 each, donated by the Totem and Rayme’s Bar, will be awarded if entrants land a king at the exact weight required. The hidden weight is a secret until a fish comes in at that poundage, Cook explained.

The derby weigh station will be open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week at the top of the ramp in Reliance Harbor, near the harbormaster office.

In addition to following Alaska Department of Fish and Game area closures and limitations, the derby rules require that people without a derby ticket “may not fish in the same boat with derby entrants — they may come along for the enjoyment of the day, just not fish.”

Gary Smart, of Seqium, Washington, won the last derby in 2017, with a 64.1 pounder. It was the largest derby catch in 43 years, the Sentinel reported at the close of the event.

Ketchikan, which also missed its derby the past three years, had planned to try for a return this year, but called off the event last month after the Department of Fish and Game advised against holding the competition, due to poor stocks of wild kings.