Fall muskie tourney targets Green Bay
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An Oct. 14-15 muskie tournament will be held on the waters of lower Green Bay, sponsored by Titletown Muskies Inc. Chapter 4.
Billed as the "Best of the Best — Muskies Inc. First International Muskie Fishing Tournament," the contest is expected to focus attention on the bay's emerging trophy muskie fishery.
The field will be limited to 150 teams, according to Ken Karbon, tournament organizer and vice president of fisheries and research for Muskies Inc. International.
An entry fee of $400 per two-person team will provide a maximum payout of $19,000, with $10,000 to the winner.
Karbon said the Department of Natural Resources has sanctioned the event and suggested the autumn date because cooler water temperatures will make it easier to release caught muskies without harm.
Muskies from Green Bay — many in the 30-pound class and above — typically make a fall movement into the Fox River and lower Green Bay. Karbon said the tournament dates hopefully will coincide with some of that migration.
Tournament anglers will be limited to fishing the lower river upstream to the De Pere Dam and lower bay from Point Sable on the east to Long Tail Point on the west.
Fishing hours will be from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday.
Anglers will be permitted to use two lines and two lures per contestant. The use of live bait or dead natural bait is prohibited. Motor trolling is allowed.
To register or get more information, contact www. muskiesinc.org.
Illinois anglers win Best of Best muskie title
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An Illinois team came up and stole the show, winning the 2006 Best of the Best muskie tournament held on lower Green Bay and the Fox River last weekend.
Tim Pinks and Mike Smith, members of the Quad County Hawg Hunters chapter of Muskies Inc. of Plano, Ill., finished with 78 points, edging Lucas Molepske and Brett Jolly of Green Bay by one point. Pinks and Smith earned $3,200 for their seven-fish effort.
The two-day competition, headquartered at Sportsman's Warehouse in De Pere, was held on the lower bay from Point Sable to Long Tail Point and on the Fox River, 7 miles up to the De Pere dam.
Total points were based on a 30-inch fish receiving four points, and one point per inch after. A one-point bonus was given for a good release. There were no bad releases.
While the number of participants was lower than expected — 15 teams from Wisconsin, Colorado, Illinois, Missouri and Kentucky — the fishing was excellent, organizers said. The anglers caught 47 muskies, an average of three per boat.
Most teams fished in the river because of windy conditions and an excellent stock. The area from the mouth to the Georgia-Pacific paper mill was the most popular stretch.
Fish ranged in size from 30 to 47½ inches, with most in the 35- to 38-inch range.
Bob Volm of Green Bay caught the biggest fish, the 47½-incher. His partner, Ken Walker, also of Green Bay, caught a 47¼-inch fish. Ron Myslik of Abrams caught a 47-incher.
Lee Meyers of the state Department of Natural Resources said there were eight judge boats located on the river, and each had cell phone contact with all tournament anglers. Muskies were registered at the location caught and released within minutes.
The DNR received $4,500 in donations to go toward its spotted muskie restoration program: $2,500 from Muskies Inc. and $2,000 from the Titletown Muskies chapter.
2006 Best of the Best muskie tournament
Top five finishers
1, Tim Pinks and Mike Smith, Plano, Ill., 78 points, $3,200.
2, Lucas Molepske and Brett Jolly, Green Bay, 77 points, $960.
3, Bob Volm and Ken Walker, Green Bay, 73 points, $480.
4, Mike Hermes and Eric Collins, Green Bay, 71 points, $384.
5, Dale Vercauteren and Ron Myslik, Abrams, 59 points, $256.
I'm impressed as I look over the NOAA map of Green Bay. There is excellent habitat and forage potential all the way from the Fox River through Little and Big Bay de Noc Michigan waters. To date the WDNR has done everything they can to establish the GLS fishery with a small genetic base, hatchery space, and funding. They haven't begun to tap the full potential of Green Bay. For the Wisconsin fishers Green Bay this beats driving to LSC.
There is much work to be done, but the Green Bay GLS fishery is established. Two major challenges that I know of still remain besides the usual lack of money. The WDNR have no problem coming up with enough brood fish in their fyke nets, the adult GLS are fertile, but WDNR has not documented natural reproduction. This year they stocked fish in new potential spawning areas. In time the fish will hopefully match up with the right spawning habitats. The second challenge is a healthy GLS population needs greater genetic diversity and some fresh stock. The WDNR is working on this and is stymied by the recent VHS disease discovery restricting fish movement from L Huron and LSC to Lake Michigan basin. The WDNR, FWS, and MDNR are cooperating to expand the GLS fishery as soon as they can get pass the VHS disease restrictions. Meanwhile a trip to lower Fox River and Green Bay would be worth checking out.
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