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The Valdez Silver Salmon Derby began Saturday, and it remains to be seen if the 20-pound barrier will be broken this year.

The last time the winning fish in the silver derby hit the 20-pound mark was in 2002. That was the year that Albert Verraill of Palmer caught a 21.76-pounder, the largest silver salmon ever recorded in the 22-year-old derby.

The winning derby fish has exceeded the 20-pound barrier only four times since the derby started in 1976.

Herb Weichert of Wasilla grabbed the early lead in the derby when he reeled in a 13.88-pound silver on Sunday. The chances of him staying atop the leader board for any length of time, though, are slim.

The smallest silver salmon ever to win the derby was a 16.03-pounder in 1979, caught by Vic Salburg of Fairbanks.

Dave Cobb of the Valdez Fisheries Development Association said an average run of 150,000 to 300,000 silvers is expected to return to the Valdez port this year.

“We’re anticipating a healthy return,” Cobb said.

Silvers should begin moving into the Port of Valdez any day now, Cobb said. Anglers are still waiting for coho to show up at Allison Point.

“Right now they’re still outside the port,” Cobb said. “The fishery usually peaks in the port in the first or second week of August.”

The biggest silvers are typically caught later in the derby, Cobb said.

Last year, Ryan Smith of Chugiak won the $15,000 top prize in the silver derby with a 19.72-pound silver he caught on the final day of the derby.

The derby runs through Aug. 30.

Fishermen are still catching lots of pinks off Allison Point, and the fish are still “pretty bright,” Cobb said.

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The Chitina personal-use dip net fishery on the Copper River re-opened Wednesday after a two-day closure, and fishing started out excellent before dropping off, charter operator Mark Hem said.

“Fishing started out excellent at midnight and dropped off at 2:30 a.m.,” Hem said on his hotline Wednesday morning.

The Copper River rose about two feet in the Wood Canyon because of rain and late snow melt, and Hem wasn’t sure how it would affect fishing.

He said it could range from poor to excellent, depending on what the river does.

“Plan on putting your time in if you have to,” Hem said.

Starting on Monday, charters will begin ferrying dip-netters to fishing spots at 6 a.m. instead of 5 a.m. because of darkness, Hem said.

The personal-use dip net fishery at Chitina will be closed on Monday next week and will reopen on Tuesday.

For up-to-date information on dip netting conditions and success at Chitina, contact Hem’s Charters hotline at 823-2200.

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King salmon fishing on the Klutina River closes at midnight tonight.

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Lorena Jenkins of Valdez continues to lead the Valdez Halibut Derby with a 244.2-pound halibut, and there haven’t been any close calls lately.

The biggest fish reported in Valdez during the past week was a 198-pounder, but the angler who caught it didn’t have a derby ticket.

The top derby fish in the past week was a 192.6-pound halibut caught by Mark Twardowski of Grand Junction, Colo.

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Silver salmon fishing in the Mat-Su Valley is “hot,” said Sam Oslund, a sport fish biologist for the Department of Fish and Game in Palmer.

“Silver fishing everywhere is real good right now,” she said on Wednesday. “Fishing should get better because the water is starting to come down.”

Anglers are reporting good success catching silvers on Jim Creek and the Eklutna Tailrace near Palmer and the Little Susitna River also is producing good coho catches, Oslund said.

Bait is not allowed in the Little Susitna River until Aug. 6.

Silvers are also being caught in Parks Highway streams as far north as Montana Creek.

It will likely take another week before silvers show up above Montana Creek, she said.

Good silver fishing also is reported in the Deshka River. More than 5,600 silvers have passed through a weir on the Deshka.

There are also some red salmon being caught in Jim Creek, as well as Cottonwood and Wasilla creeks, both of which are weekend-only fisheries.

Fish Creek also has good numbers of red salmon but does not open to rod-and-reel fishing until Aug. 9, and it is only a weekend fishery.

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King salmon fishing in the Kenai and Kasilof rivers closes today, and Kenai Peninsula anglers will turn their attention to red and silver salmon for the next month.

Late-run sockeye salmon are hitting both the Russian and upper Kenai rivers, and fishing is rated as fair to good, according to Robert Begich at ADF&G in Soldotna. Sockeye fishing in the lower Kenai River will be closed by emergency order starting Friday to reduce harvest to achieve escapement goals. The personal-use dip net fishery at the mouth of the Kenai River closes today.

Red salmon fishing and dip netting in the Kasilof River is fair. The dip netting season on the Kasilof is open through Aug. 7.

Some silver salmon have began showing up and coho fishing for this time of the year is good, Begich said.