Where Salmon is King

     The late spring spawning season of salmon in Alaska is the Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, Carnival and Christmas all wrapped up into one.  It is anticipated with eager joy and enthusiasm.  There are actually 5 species of salmon that inhabit the waters of the 49th State but none is more prized than the King Salmon, the most desired, largest and scarcest of them all.  It has the highest amount of healthy Omega-3 fatty oils and is sought after by gourmands and sporting types alike.  Without a doubt it is the most important sport and commercial fish in North America.

     The King Salmon is known by a variety of names.  Called the Chinook by the tribal clans that once inhabited the area around the Columbia River in Washington State, it is also called Quinnat, Tyee, Black and Chubb.  But make no doubt about it, they are the largest and most prized, known for their power and endurance.  Usually weighing between 25-30 pounds and 2-4 feet in length, it's not uncommon to reel in a King that is 60-80 pounds.  The largest King Salmon ever caught weighed a whopping 126 pounds back in 1949.

     King Salmon, like the other 4 species, are anadromous, meaning that they hatch their eggs in fresh water then migrate to the ocean to mature for a few years before returning to the fresh water of their birth to spawn only once, then die.  And unique to the King, when they spawn their teeth enlarge and their snout develops a characteristic hook and the males develop a hump in their back.



     We arrived just at the beginning of the season when King Salmon were returning to fresh water.  It was a celebratory time and the restaurant where we dined one evening even had a King on display in the lobby.  And of course, King Salmon was the featured entree on the menu that night.  But at $48 I decided not to pay a king's ransom to dine on one.