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Jim Lavrakas offers 3-hour guided sessions on Anchorage’s Ship Creek. The 2004 Ship Creek King Salmon Derby Champion, Jim will take you into the muddy bowels of the most urban salmon fishery in the United States.

The Plan Of Attack
Have only a few days in Anchorage, or just ovenighting, before you head out to go explore Alaska? Have you looked at Ship Creek’s busy banks, with its hordes of fishermen, and been too intimidated to try it? Are you afraid of the mud?

Let me show you how to deal with “combat fishing”, changing tidal conditions, and the famed “sucking mud” of Cook Inlet. We’ll spend 3 hours on the creek fishing the optimum technique for the time of day, tidal conditions, and timing of the salmon run. I limit clients to two per session, 2 sessions daily.
(ABOVE, Jim with client Eric Escalon of Spring, TX with a chrome hen king June 2008. Photo courtesy of Gerome D'Anna.)

The Opponent
KING SALMON •
Run from late May through middle of July. Approximately 4-5,000 returning Chinooks, averaging 15-25 pounds with some larger 30-45 lb. lunkers.

SILVER SALMON •
Run from late June through August. Approximately 14-15,000 returning Coho, averaging 5-8 pounds with some 10-12 pounders.

The Field of Battle
Ship Creek is a clear running, non glacial stream, so sight fishing is possible unless a rain in the mountains muddies the waters. Also, it’s an estuary, which means tidal sea water mixes with the clear fresh water of the creek so that on the incoming tide visibility can be limited.

The legal fishing area for salmon runs from the mouth of the creek where it empties into Cook Inlet to a cable just below an old power plant upstream of the mouth just over a half mile. (ABOVE, client Frank Maiorano of Atlanta, GA with a 20 lb. hen caught June 4, 2008.)

The upper portion of the creek is fairly easily accessed and can be done so in hip waders. The lower portion of the river has deep glacial mud (from Cook Inlet) where chestwaders and tie-on boots are a must. (I'll supply the hipwaders, you supply your own chestwaders/boots.)

The Fine Details (for more info, click here)
I limit clients to 2 at a time, twice daily. (I can take athletic pre-teens and teens into the creek with parental approval.) Also, handicap accessible.

Hold harmless contracts will need to be signed.

Fee for the sessions is $125 per person.

I’ll supply the appropriate fishing gear (rod/reel combo, terminal tackle and bait) and hipwaders. You'll need to buy your fishing license, and for kings you’ll also need a king stamp. I am an authorized Fishing License Vendor (cash only).

If you decide you want to try fishing the mid and/or lower river, chestwaders and tie-on boots are a must (because of heavy mud), and you'll need to supply those.

Fully licensed sport fish guide by the State of Alaska, and permitted for entry to Ship Creek by the Alaska Railroad Corp.

(ABOVE, A feisty silver being brought in on the lower section of the river.)