The Fish Ladder at the Hatchery

Final step in the ladder before being sorted and stripped of eggs

The Fish Ladder

It's salmon spawning season!  In the next couple weeks we are expecting salmons to start running up the creeks to return to their spawning grounds to lay eggs and die.  For an easy view of running salmons in Juneau, you can check out The Fish Ladder at the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery off of Salmon Creek Road.  The 450 ft "ladder" helps the salmon swim up to an area where they are later sorted for egg harvesting.  It's pretty amazing to see these fish swim up against current and through these tiny openings between each step in the ladder.  You can also learn here a little bit about the types of Salmon that can be found: Chum, Coho, Pink, Sockeye, and King.  Inside the hatchery you will find a small aquarium and gift shop full of salmon products - from smoked salmon to caviar. 

Seeing all of these salmons made me want to go fishing like some people were from a dock a short distance from the hatchery.  I'm not sure I'll get out there this year since I still need to get all the necessary equipment (poles, tackle box, etc.), but it's definitely on our must do list for next year.  We'll also be able to get the local rates for fishing licenses by then too.  (You have to be a resident of Alaska for a year before you are eligible for the discounted rates.)   All we have to do is probably catch one salmon and we have our dinner for the week.  I wonder if we can catch Sushi grade salmon.  I'm dreamin' of all-you-can-eat fresh salmon, salmon sushi, and smoked salmon... yum!