VALDEZ, Alaska – Anglers are winning weekly prizes worth hundreds of dollars in the Valdez Halibut Derby with fish weighing in at just over 100 pounds. Daltin Klaphaile of Piere, Minnesota took home the 1st place prize for the week with a 127.8-pound halibut he caught June 21st aboard the Hooked Up. Tom Keeler of Casa Grande, Arizona took 2nd place for the week with a 119.2-pound halibut he caught June 19th aboard the Mrs. D. Nice fish are coming into Port Valdez but the derby winning halibut is probably still out there. Robert Huber II is still leading the Valdez Halibut Derby with the 140.0-pound fish he caught on the 2nd day of the derby, but it would be a small winner if it held on through August 31st. Last year Natalie Cevasco of Fairbanks won the $10,000 first place prize with a 205-pound halibut and in 2023 Paul Casey won the top prize with a 316.8-pound halibut.
Derby anglers have had a lot of halibut and rockfish to fillet at the Valdez Harbor, but the tables were also full of bright red salmon pulled from the Copper River. The Chitina Personal Use was open through June 22nd. According to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, more than 101,000 salmon passed the Miles Lake sonar the first week of June.
Pink salmon are expected to be available by the 4th of July weekend and should be in Port of Valdez for the Annual Kids Pink Salmon Derby. While pinks can be caught on July 4th weekend, there’s a Kids Pink Salmon Derby in Valdez Saturday, July 19th when the fish are heavier in the Port.
Valdez Fish Derbies will be giving away free hats for kids aged 5 to 16 between 6am and 10am Saturday morning, July 19th. To enter the Kids Pink Salmon Derby, kids just need to get a hat, take a picture that includes a pink salmon, one child and the hat (either on the kid or the fish!) and upload it to valdezfishderbies.com. Winners will be chosen at random for one of four $100 cash prizes or one of eight fishing poles. Visit https://www.valdezfishderbies.com/kids-derby/ for more information. The Kids Pink Salmon Derby is free and there will be a live radio show for kids on KVAK 93.3FM and 1230AM Saturday, July 19th from 5pm to 6pm. KVAK Kids Broadcasting Camp participants will be emceeing the Kids Derby Radio Show and there will be giveaways exclusively for kids 5 to 16. The big radio prize is 10 pounds of jelly bellies. Information and winners will be posted on www.valdezfishderbies.com.
The Valdez Silver Salmon Derby starts July 19th, the same day as the Kids Derby, so anglers wanting a great family trip can fish for both pinks and silvers in the same weekend. The Women’s Silver Salmon Derby is slated for August 9th and the theme this year is “Flower Power – Peace, Love & Fishing”.
Halibut Derby – Overall Leaders
1st Robert Hubert II | Wasilla, AK | 140.0 lbs. | May 25 | Hofshore
2nd Robert Moloney | Fairbanks, AK | 130.4 lbs. | May 24 | Sentinel
3rd Daltin Klaphaile | Piere, MN | 127.8 lbs. | June 21 | Hooked Up
Halibut Derby – Weekly Winners
1st Daltin Klaphaile | Piere, MN | 127.8 lbs. | June 21 | Hooked Up
2nd Tom Keeler | Casa Grande, AZ | 119.2 lbs. | June 19 | Mrs. D