DIPAC's Macaulay Salmon Hatchery

DIPAC's Macaulay Salmon Hatchery A private, non-profit organization dedicated to salmon fisheries enhancement and education. At Macaulay Salmon Hatchery, summer is when salmon abound!

During the months of May and June, visitors have the opportunity to see juvenile salmon prior to their release. Adult salmon start returning up our fish ladder the beginning of July and continue through early October. Bald Eagles and seals frequent the hatchery and our outside decks provide a fantastic wildlife viewing opportunity. Inside our Visitor Center, guests can explore our saltwater aquari

ums displaying a diverse collection of local marine life. Presentations are offered May-September where visitors can learn about the fascinating life cycle of Pacific salmon and the inner workings of our hatchery from one of our local guides. These tours are a fun, affordable, and educational experience for the whole family! October - March our aquariums are available to the public by appointment only. Salmon product can be ordered by phone or email and shipped anywhere in the United States. The Visitor Center is available for rent November through March and makes a great event space for the holiday season. Fall and Spring we offer educational programs. To learn more, please call 907-463-4810.

Happy Summer! 🐟🦐🦀The Ladd Macaulay Visitor Center is now observing its regular summer schedule. With the exception of cl...
06/02/2026

Happy Summer! 🐟🦐🦀

The Ladd Macaulay Visitor Center is now observing its regular summer schedule. With the exception of closing early (3PM) on June 27th, regular hours are posted here!

September hours will be posted towards the end of the summer for those planning their visits for later this year.

This is the final DIPAC 50th anniversary post celebrating our current decade & future ahead!🥳🐟🥳🐟🥳🐟DIPAC continues its mi...
06/02/2026

This is the final DIPAC 50th anniversary post celebrating our current decade & future ahead!🥳🐟🥳🐟🥳🐟

DIPAC continues its mission today to sustain and enhance valuable salmon resources of the State of Alaska for the economic, social, and cultural benefit of all citizens, and to promote public understanding of Alaska's salmon resources and salmon fisheries through research, education, and tourism. DIPAC has not added any new release sites or programs this decade, and is working to continue achieving its goals while adapting to changes in natural environmental conditions.

This decade DIPAC began mass marking Chinook salmon with a 100% adipose fin clip to bring awareness to the Juneau community of the significance of the local fishery enhancement program. Be on the lookout for more adipose fin clipped Chinook at the end of your line this summer. We hope you enjoyed celebrating this journey with us and hope you take the opportunity to get out and fish in the greater Juneau area this year! Check out more on our marking and tagging rates here: https://www.dipac.net/research-evaluation

Since 1976, DIPAC has had approximately 50 million adult salmon return to the Juneau area for the common property fishermen. Check out our 50 year economic report for more info on all of DIPAC’s programs:https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5671b3100e4c11f307a593a2/t/69e9267099ffba0c33cb7d76/1776887408614/1.+DIPAC-50th+Anniversary+Brochure.pdf

TODAY’s the DAY! We’re having our “soft opening” of the Ladd Macaulay Visitor Center for the summer season. May hours ar...
05/04/2026

TODAY’s the DAY! We’re having our “soft opening” of the Ladd Macaulay Visitor Center for the summer season. May hours are variable, so be sure to check out our website for the most up to date hours before swinging by! May hours also posted below.

LOCALS: Please ask us about our season pass deals when you arrive!

Hope to see you soon!🐟🦐🦀🐟

DIPAC’s 50th Anniversary celebration continues with a step back into the 2010’s!🐟🥳🐟 The salmon market changed for chum s...
05/04/2026

DIPAC’s 50th Anniversary celebration continues with a step back into the 2010’s!🐟🥳🐟

The salmon market changed for chum salmon and DIPAC was able to pay off its debt to the State of Alaska from loans across the first 40 years of the program. In this decade, the DIPAC Board designated funds and began distributions of the Ladd Macaulay Memorial Scholarship for Baccalaureate and Vocational Education Programs. The Board also set up an endowment fund through University of Alaska – College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences for a Master’s Level Research Program; The Ladd Macaulay Memorial Fellowship. The coho and Chinook annex building was built at the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery which increased smolt production by 1 million. Sheep Creek Hatchery was demolished and is now the site of a community garden. DIPAC added its final Chinook release site in 2013 at Lena Cove. The Southeast Alaska common property seine fleet was allowed into Amalga Harbor Special Harvest Area for the first time. The DIPAC board designated funds to raise two totems poles to thank the Tlingit people of this area for allowing us to share their watershed. DIPAC was adopted and given the Tlingit name X̲áat Hídi, “Salmon House,” at the raising ceremony.

DIPAC’s 50th Anniversary celebration continues with a step back into the first decade of the 2000’s! In the early 2000’s...
04/02/2026

DIPAC’s 50th Anniversary celebration continues with a step back into the first decade of the 2000’s! In the early 2000’s DIPAC tragically lost its founder, Ladd Macaulay, and the Gastineau Salmon Hatchery and Visitor Center changed their name to honor him. DIPAC discontinued raising pink salmon in 2002 (last return of pinks in 2003) and continued raising the 4 other species of salmon at 3 facilities. Sheep Creek Hatchery was used only as a satellite smolt rearing facility for Chinook & coho as incubation programs were shifted to Gastineau Salmon Hatchery in the prior decade. DIPAC continued to welcome more visitors and students through the Ladd Macaulay Visitor Center. The hatcheries continued with current release sites, but switched brood sources from Montana Creek stock coho to Fish Creek (Taku River) stock coho salmon. The wet lab at the new UAF campus at Lena Point took on the needs of the lab at the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery, and that space was converted to other uses. The State of Alaska built an upgraded sport dock with better parking next to the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery to offer ADA accessible fishing from shore. This dock is now owned and operated by the City & Borough of Juneau.

DIPAC’s 50th Anniversary celebration continues with a step back into the 1990s—a decade defined by collaboration, innova...
03/02/2026

DIPAC’s 50th Anniversary celebration continues with a step back into the 1990s—a decade defined by collaboration, innovation, and growth. During this period, DIPAC expanded its partnership with the State of Alaska Sportfish Division to increase Chinook salmon production in the Juneau area, including adding release sites at Fish Creek Pond and Auke Bay. DIPAC assumed operations of the Snettisham Hatchery from the State of Alaska, including the Sweetheart Lake sockeye stocking program for personal use fishing, domestic sockeye smolt releases, and transboundary sockeye enhancement on behalf of the State for the Pacific Salmon Treaty. Technological advances also marked the decade. Otolith mass-marking technology was implemented on a large scale for the first time at the Gastineau Salmon Hatchery. DIPAC staff began collecting samples from the fisheries and reading scales and otoliths in a newly established on-site laboratory, initiating the mass marking of all salmon produced at DIPAC facilities. Research and education flourished as well. Dr. Bill Smoker from the University of Alaska Fairbanks School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences conducted master’s-level research projects using lab space at the hatchery. The Visitor Center opened its doors, featuring aquariums and educational programs that welcomed local schoolchildren and visitors from around the world—strengthening DIPAC’s role in both fisheries enhancement and public education. DIPAC also installed a sport fishing dock adjacent to the Gastineau Salmon Hatchery, improving shore-based fishing access for the public. DIPAC also experimented with innovative value added salmon products.

DIPAC’s 50th Anniversary celebration continues with a step back into the 1980’s! The 80s were a time of research and dev...
02/03/2026

DIPAC’s 50th Anniversary celebration continues with a step back into the 1980’s! The 80s were a time of research and development for DIPAC and the greater Alaska Salmon Hatchery industry. Sheep Creek Hatchery came online in 1980, and the vision of the Gastineau Salmon Hatchery (now Macaulay Salmon Hatchery) began taking shape. NSRAA’s Salmon Creek Hatchery (no longer operating) was used temporarily while the Gastineau Salmon Hatchery was built, and DIPAC worked with AEL&P to secure water rights from that watershed. The first release of Montana Creek stock coho salmon were released in Gastineau Channel in 1985. DIPAC collaborated with the State of Alaska on the first small Chinook salmon releases in Gastineau Channel. In the late 1980’s DIPAC began working with the State & NSRAA for the production of chum salmon at both Limestone Inlet (previously a State managed chum salmon release site) & Boat Harbor. DIPAC worked with the community and various State agencies to acquire the permits to begin releasing chum salmon at Amalga Harbor in the next decade. Production was discontinued at Kowee Creek (Douglas Island) Hatchery late in the decade.

Hiring Announcement!!The Ladd Macaulay Visitor Center is actively hiring educators for the 2026 tourism season. Think yo...
01/22/2026

Hiring Announcement!!

The Ladd Macaulay Visitor Center is actively hiring educators for the 2026 tourism season.

Think you might be a good fit?? Head on over to our website (link in profile) to check out the job description & apply! 😄🐟

This year we are celebrating DIPAC’s 50th Birthday! Douglas Island Pink and Chum, Inc. was officially incorporated in Fe...
01/05/2026

This year we are celebrating DIPAC’s 50th Birthday! Douglas Island Pink and Chum, Inc. was officially incorporated in February of 1976. From its humble beginnings in the Macaulay family back yard on Douglas Island, we’re thankful for all the support of the Fishermen, Alaska Fisheries advocates across the State, and the Juneau community who got us to where we are today. We’ll be posting once a month to highlight each decade of DIPAC’s major milestones. For January, please enjoy these groovy photos from the first few years in the 1970s!

Thanks for coming out to our Holiday Open House! 😊Don’t worry, Santa is fully dry and ready to resume his important Chri...
12/24/2025

Thanks for coming out to our Holiday Open House! 😊

Don’t worry, Santa is fully dry and ready to resume his important Christmas duties this evening. 🎅

DIPAC staff wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! 🎄🎉

Address

2697 Channel Drive
Juneau, AK
99801

Telephone

+19074634810

Website

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