Alaska Fishing

Alaskans caught the heftiest silver salmon and halibut in Valdez this year, as the Valdez Fish Derbies ended Sunday.

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Steve Caverly of Eagle River with his 312.9-pound halibut.

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Led by hometown angler Chuck Gard's 19.42-pounder -- the only fish to break the 19-pound barrier -- Alaskans claimed the top seven spots in silver salmon derby, and the top five spots in the halibut derby as well.

Gard took home $15,000 for the fish he caught on his sailboat Aug. 13. Eagle River angler Danielle Grubb came closest to Gard with her 18.92-pounder landed aboard the Salmonator on Aug. 29.

"Winning never even entered my mind," Gard said on Monday. "I've seen a lot of 19-pounders and a couple of 20-pounders weighed in that didn't have tickets.

"There were 24 days left of the derby when I caught my fish, so I never thought it would hold on."

The big fish was hooked near Gold Creek in Valdez Arm. Gard, the second consecutive Valdez champion, and fishing companion Father Frank Reitter had landed five silvers and were headed back to the dock aboard Gard's 26-foot sailboat.

They trolled one line, and the hit provoked an argument.

"I tried to get him to take (the pole), and he was trying to get me to take it," Gard said. "While we were arguing about it, I was watching the pole bounce and (the fish) was ripping line out."

A tough battle followed that included one jump. Reitter, a priest from South Dakota who is visiting Alaska and conducting services around the state, netted the big fish.

"I didn't think it was that big," Gard said.

His sailboat tops out at 7 mph, so it took more than a half hour to return to port. Gard wonders whether his fish lost six-tenths of a pound, which would have pushed it over 20 pounds, enroute.

That's of little concern now that he has a $15,000 check.

"There was talk about disqualifying me for too much spiritual help," he said in reference to Father Reitter.

He plans to make a donation to Reitter's favorite charity but beyond that hasn't decided what he'll do with the money.

Women took four of the top-10 spots in the silver salmon derby, including Women's Silver Salmon Derby winner Christy Roden, who ended up fourth.

The top-five spots in the halibut derby didn't budge over the last month of the summer-long derby, with Eagle River angler Steve Caverly claiming $15,000 for his 313-pounder, the only fish to break the 300-pound barrier.

Defending silver salmon champion Derek Werder of Valdez, who established the derby record last year with his 22.14-pounder, settled for 27th this year, landing a 16.48-pound silver.

Overall, Valdez fish were slightly heavier than fish entered in last month's Seward Silver Salmon Derby. The Valdez winner outweighed the top Seward fish 19.42 to 18.66 pounds. Valdez' 50th place fish was bigger too -- 15.48 pounds to 14.65 pounds.

Still, many days brought difficult salmon fishing for Valdez anglers, and the fish were late arriving in Valdez Arm.

"This year, a lot of people had to fish a lot harder," said Gard, who's lived in Valdez 35 years. "The fish were weird. They weren't schooling up like they normally do. There was a lot of times we did pretty good one day and went out the next day and caught two or three."

The fish were so late that derby officials allowed anglers to fish all the way out in the Gulf of Alaska, and many anglers in the Women's Derby on Aug. 8 traveled 30 miles to find fish near Goose Island.

Reach reporter Mike Campbell at mcampbell@adn.com or 257-4329.

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