Shrimping enthusiasts love Prince William Sound for its abundant shrimp populations and breathtaking scenery. Learn how to fill your pots and freezer with this delicious, sweet shrimp.
by Nick Olzenak
Shrimping Part 1: Getting Started
Prince William Sound (PWS) spot shrimp make some amazing cuisine. The reason Prince William Sound spot shrimp are so popular is their purely sweet and delicious flavor. There is simply not a way you could prepare them that isn’t absolutely decadent! PWS Shrimp are so sweet and flavorful that if they are cleaned and frozen properly, they can taste deliciously fresh up to one year later! A common sight, and to me, the best is fresh from the depths, right to the BBQ grill on the back deck of that boat! Now that’s shrimpin’!
Type of shrimp found in PWS
While there are five species of shrimp found in waters around Alaska, in Prince William Sound we generally target spot shrimp, marked notably by large white spots and typically larger than the other species. A fascinating fact about these (Pandalus) shrimp is that they are hermaphroditic. These shrimp spend the first part of their lives as males and then turn into females! When we are what we call “in the shrimp” and the catch rates are good, we see spot shrimp range in size from just a few inches all the way up to nearly a foot long!
I have been the General Manager for Alaska Mining and Diving Supply in Anchorage for most of my career and we sell a line of top brands that focus on outdoor recreation and enjoying Alaska. One of these brands is Kingfisher Boats. We hold a Regatta out of Whittier for our community of Kingfisher Boat owners each summer. During the regatta a few years back one participant won the largest shrimp category of our tournament with a shrimp that was about 11 ½ inches long! These large or “jumbo” shrimp as we call them only take about a half dozen to make a romantic, ocean-to-table meal for two! Average sizes of whole shrimp run more like 6- to 8 inches. It only takes about a dozen and a half of these sweet gifts from the sea to make a nice family meal (more on that later!)
More than Just Shrimpin’
From my perspective, what makes the shrimp fishery so appealing is how much more there is to it than just shrimping itself! There are a few of us who enjoy fishing but not ONLY FISHING. We can find a productive shrimp spot or test spot (I’ll share my most secret spot in Part 2 of this series!), drop our pots, and then we have 2,500 square miles of playground to explore! My kids are just a little too young to fully appreciate fishing just yet. Several years ago my wife and I purchased the publishing rights for The Cruising Guide to Prince William Sound.
It made perfect sense because we were already deeply ingrained in the PWS lifestyle. We’ve relied on this guide for years. We’ll pick it up to find a new place to explore while our shrimp gear is “soaking.” Hikes to old, abandoned gold mines, or high alpine ridge line hikes to take in breathtaking views of The Sound, or long walks on the beach (yes that’s still a thing!) there is no shortage of untouched adventure awaiting you in the sound. All while shrimp magically appear into your pot to feed you some of the most amazing seafood to ever cross your lips! On a recent spring shrimping and bear hunting trip we even found a beach with thousands of sand dollars…we had never experienced that before!
Here’s what you need to know to harvest your own top level table fare.
Shrimping, like all fishing takes a bit of time and research to be successful. One season it can seem like shrimp are everywhere filling your pots with little effort on your part. Other years you may become quite frustrated that you can’t seem to get on the “bite.” Stay vigilant, use a booklet chart to take notes and document what works and what doesn’t. Stay consistent and be patient and don’t be afraid to test areas for 1-2 hours before committing to an overnight soak or longer. There is almost nothing more frustrating than soaking in a new spot for 24 or even 48 hours only to get skunked! Good bait, good gear and great strategy will fill your freezer like mine…to the top!
We carry all that shrimping gear at Alaska Mining and Diving Supply and are happy to help get you started in one shopping trip. Enjoying sweet Prince William Sound Shrimp all year long!
Gearing Up to Go Shrimping: What basic items must I have?
You’ll need a boat… that maybe goes without saying but you don’t need a big fancy expensive boat to get the job done. I know plenty of folks who do very well shrimping from a small skiff or even kayak. You don’t even HAVE to have a pot puller. If you are using only one pot at a time and have some upper body strength and conditioning, you can hand pull your pot up. Good bait and good gear, a general understanding of shrimp habitat and their feeding habits, and you should be swimming…in shrimp! Just remember Prince William Sound is no joke…check the conditions and forecast before venturing out in a small skiff, kayak or even a large boat. Weather can turn faster than you can say SHRIMP so be sure to be aware of the forecast.
Gear that isn’t crucial but it makes your life easier
You can save yourself a lot of time and increase your harvest even using the most basic 12 volt pot puller like the Scotty Pot Puller I use as my main puller! It makes hauling pots fast, easy and safe. Quickly hauling your gear can increase your efficiency and catch rates.
Now that your mouth is watering for giant spot shrimp and you have a basic understanding of what you need to get started, you’ll want to dive into our next segment in this Shrimpin’ Guide for a step-by-step tutorial on how to catch shrimp.
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Nick Olzenak is the General Manager of Alaska Mining and Diving Supply and the Publisher of The Cruising Guide to Prince William Sound. One of Nick’s favorite pastimes is spending it with his family exploring Prince William Sound.
Looking for more Guides to Fishing in Alaska? Check out Fish Alaska’s How-To Archives.