Kings already biting as Slam'n Salm'n Derby gets rolling at Ship Creek

Not long after sun-up Friday, Alaska's biggest urban fishing derby gets rolling in downtown Anchorage when the 10-day Slam'n Salm'n Derby, a fundraiser for the Downtown Soup Kitchen, kicks off.

Anglers haven't been waiting for the derby's opening gun. Nearly 200 of the big salmon have been caught in the weeks leading up to the derby, according to Dustin Slinker of The Bait Shack on the banks of Ship Creek. He weighed a 43-pounder earlier this week.

[Check out photos of Ship Creek kings caught here.]

"I'm seeing multiple fish each day," Slinker said. "We're just starting to see the bigger fish too."

The derby starts 6 a.m. Friday and runs until noon on Sunday, June 19. In between, it's open 6 a.m.-11 p.m. daily.

Unlike most fishing derbies, tickets are free and available at derby headquarters, across from the Ulu Factory, for the duration of the tournament. Donations to the Downtown Soup Kitchen are encouraged; Slinker said most anglers give at least $20.

Anglers can fish from the mouth of Ship Creek to 100 feet downstream of the Chugach Power Plant dam.

Anglers catching the 20 heaviest kings win prizes, and there are also prizes, includes ones for the 49th king entered, the biggest fish caught by a military angler and tagged salmon worth as much as $1,000.

The first-place winner will receive a gold medallion, 18 10-ounce silver bars, an ulu and an Alaska Mint coin.

"I want to see women and kids out here catching fish," Slinker said.   "Guys in the military who've been trying for years to catch a king and finally land one. For me, that's the payoff."