Ketchikan Salmon Fishing Vacations Are Not Just About Fish

By Krystal Branch


Ketchikan salmon fishing and other natural resources have attracted people to this spot in Alaska for centuries. Today, it's not only the fish that bring visitors to this historic and picturesque town. History, arts and crafts, wildlife, hiking, vibrant community life, and first-class resorts combine to make this a vacation destination for the whole family.

While those who love sport fishing are tackling the best that experienced guides can show them, others can do their own exploring. There is practically unlimited hiking, exciting wildlife to see, local and natural history museum exhibits, souvenir shops, fine art galleries, and all the amenities of first-class resorts and lodges. The whole family will have a wonderful time.

It's an adventure just getting around in this wilderness. There are places guests can access by vehicle, but many places require a boat or plane ride or a long hike along a forest trail. Black and brown bears, mountain goats, deer, and moose are often seen on land, while sea lions, seals, porpoises, and whales frolic in the water. Bird watchers will find many sea birds and land birds from hummingbirds to Bald Eagles.

Of course, the abundance of fish has made this area famous for years and years. There are five species of salmon that make their runs from the open ocean to the upper stretches of Ketchikan Creek. The local names are Chinook, Coho, Sockeye, Humpy, and Dog, also known as king, silver, red, pink, and churn. This creek was the summer home for Tingit natives, who caught fish to preserve for the long winters.

The lakes teem with trout, including Rainbow, Cutthroat, and Steelhead. The ocean offers halibut, two kinds of cod, and Red Snapper for sports fishing. Ketchikan Creek was an annual summer home for the Tingit natives, who fished the waters all around for their winter stores. Commercial fishermen from America came in 1900 to establish a town near the abundant supply.

This description should occupy anglers for at least some of the time. However, there is so much to do that it may be hard to decide where to start for the rest of the family. Kids might like a vintage cannery tour, a hike through the Tongrass National Forest, an excursion to the Deer Mountain Tribal Hatchery and Eagle Center to see fish enclosures and rescued raptors, or a video presentations at the visitor's center.

Even very young children will love the vintage totem poles collected from abandoned native villages and preserved at the Totem Heritage Center. They will like the restaurants, gift shops, art and photography galleries, and museums of Creek Street, the wooden boardwalk at the heart of the town. There are workshops in local crafts and live music and theater, as well.

A vacation that includes Ketchikan salmon fishing and all the other activities and attractions of this Alaskan resort town will make memories for people of all ages. Go for the fish, the wildlife, the Tingit culture, or a taste of the wild.




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