Billy Singleton. “King Salmon Sport Fishery Underway.” Ketchikan Daily News. June 30, 2018

Following low forecasts for wild king salmon returns to Southeast Alaska rivers, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game in March announced that all the inside waters of Southeast Alaska would be closed to retaining kings while sport fishing from April 1 through June 14.

Now that the season has been open for two weeks, it’s possible to get a sense of how things are looking for sport fishermen in this critical year for king salmon. But closures and lower king salmon populations have impacted various stakeholders differently, and the long-term effects of these factors are not yet clear.

“The people that come to our lodge like to catch salmon,” Angerman said. “They take our boats out, they stay in our beach houses, but they also come for so much more that Ketchikan has to offer. Whale watching for example. And, the eagles they go crazy about. Ketchikan is known as ‘the salmon capital of the world’ and so when the Alaska Department of Fish & Game announces a closure, people take notice. It is disappointing that that happened, to our business it really didn’t have an effect.”