As an early rush of king salmon push into Anchorage's Ship Creek, kicking off the 2016 sportfishing season in Southcentral, the Alaska Sport Fishing Association has made it easier for anglers to negotiate slippery tidal mud the creek flows through.
The organization spearheaded the construction and installation of a bridge on the mudflats about 100 yards northwest of the parking area. The new 24-foot-long, 3-foot wide bridge was installed in mid-May, replacing a deteriorating older bridge. Materials cost $1,000, said Martin Meigs, president of the Alaska Sportfishing Association.
"This is a big deal," said Jim Lavrakas, the 2004 Downtown Soup Kitchen Slam'n Salm'n Derby champion and creator of the Andy Sorensen Award for sportsmanship during the Ship Creek fishing festival that starts June 10. "Anything that improves accessibility to Ship Creek is a big deal, because that Cook Inlet mud is so daunting for veterans and newbies.
[Learn how to catch Ship Creek kings]
"I've taken countless spills from slipping at the cross bridge by the old wharf, once … as I tried to bring a 30-pound king up the slope."
The old bridge was installed because crossing a gully when the wet mud was slick was difficult — especially for children, the handicapped and the elderly, noted Meigs.
"The metal grate bridge across the flats is access to the biggest area where anglers go to bobber fish on the incoming tide," Lavrakas said. "Lots of families use that path, bringing coolers and chairs — and the kids," Lavrakas said.
Meigs estimated that 50 to 500 anglers a day use the bridge during the height of the king and silver salmon fishing seasons, depending on weather and the quality of the fishing.
So far, the king run appears to be early and building.
"We're doing quite well," said Dustin Slinker of The Bait Shack, the derby headquarters at 212 W. Whitney Rd., near the banks of Ship Creek. "We're probably 70 fish into the season. I've seen probably 15-18 fish caught this morning, and that's happening every tide.
[Photos of kings caught so far]
"I personally took one cast this morning to catch one fish. As soon as I got that on the bank, the guy to my left caught a 28-pounder."
Slinker, who bought The Bait Shack in 2010, checked his records Monday and found the first king salmon reported to the Bait Shack last year was caught May 22. This year, the first arrived nine days earlier.
Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologists confirm that anglers are reporting success just before or after high tide. They recommend Spin-n-Glo lures with salmon roe or spinners.
Fishing is open 6 a.m.-11 p.m. from the creek mouth to the cable crossing some 100 feet below the Chugach Power Plant dam.
Upstream of the dam to Reeve Boulevard, fishing is closed until June 14.