Haines gillnetter Gregg Bigsby was motoring his fishing boat north Wednesday with 800 pounds of fresh king salmon aboard for Saturday’s free, community barbecue sponsored by the local commercial fishing industry.
The event, which features a dinner of barbecued king and side dishes at Dalton City, is now in its third year.
“This is a goodwill, first-of-the-season party. We’re sharing in the bounty that we have here, which is great,” Bigsby said. “This is from the fishing industry, to let the community know we’re here and we support them.”
The effort has 11 sponsors including all the fish buyers in Lynn Canal, Ocean Beauty, the borough’s largest taxpayer, aquaculture groups, and fishermen’s associations, Bigsby said.
Part of the reason for having the event is that commercial fishing can be overlooked, he said. Another is that fishermen are so busy in the summer, they don’t always have time to sit down with their neighbors.
“Last year we had 700 people come. We’d be happy with that many or more. We’re hoping for 900,” he said.
Haines Packing is filleting the fish and generations of fishing families will man the barbecues, Bigsby said. “All our sponsors are really eager to be involved and want to meet everybody.”