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New Stillwater Fly-Fishing Tournament in Manitoba

PostPosted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 1:45 am
by OutdoorsMB
New Stillwater Fly-Fishing Tournament
Leaps Onto Manitoba's Angling Calendar


WINNIPEG, Manitoba, Canada -- A new fly-fishing tournament to be held on four trout-stocked lakes is among this year's competitive events for anglers in the central Canadian province of Manitoba.

The inaugural edition of the Bug Chucker Cup-Manitoba Stillwater is scheduled for June 1-2, 2012, in the western Manitoba town of Roblin and the neighboring area. The locally organized annual event is Manitoba's only fly-fishing tournament.

Roblin was the site of the 2010 Canadian National Fly Fishing Championships.

Anglers will compete in two-person teams, fishing from boats for brook, brown, rainbow, and tiger trout on East Goose Lake, Persse Lake, Twin Lakes, and a fourth aerated lake yet to be announced, according to tournament co-chair Bill Pollack. Each team will fish on two different lakes each day at assigned times.

Anglers must supply their own watercraft. Pollack expects most will fish from single-person inflatable devices such as float tubes or pontoon boats, with a few using 12- or 14-foot aluminum boats. Gasoline engines are forbidden.

The organizing committee will pair individual entrants with partners to form teams.

The team taking first prize will receive $100 (Canadian) per team member and laser-engraved wood fly boxes as mementos. Second prize is $75 per team member. Third prize is $50 per member. First, second, and third prize winners also receive free entry to the 2013 tournament. Merchandise prizes will be awarded in other categories.

Judging for the catch-and-release event is based on the total combined length of fish caught by each team. Each team member can register three fish per lake, or a total of 12 per person for the tournament.

Entry fees are $40 per person, or $80 for a two-person team. Registration check-in is May 31. For information, call 204-937-8925 or 204-937-3324. Website: http://www.bugchuckercup.com.

Ice-Fishing Derbies

Lake trout are the main target of hard-water anglers heading to the Bill Bannock Classic Ice Fishing Derby, March 31, on Clearwater Lake, The Pas, in northern Manitoba. First prize is $21,000 (Canadian). The derby, organized by the Rotary Club of The Pas, says it will award more than 100 prizes totaling more than $80,000 in value. Prizes are based on length, and all species native to Clearwater Lake are eligible. Last year's first-place winner was a 25.59-inch lake trout. Entry fee is $80. Information is available at http://www.billbannock.com or at (204) 623-1617.

An angler could hook a $50,000 prize at the 14th annual Nelson House Ice Fishing Derby, April 8, on Footprint Lake in the northern Manitoba community of Nelson House. That's the reward for landing the one fish specially tagged for the derby. The tag number will be announced before the start of the derby. For the derby's regular prizes, spokesman Oswald Sawh says points are calculated according to a fish's length and a multiplying factor for the species.

Cash prizes range from $100 to $1,000. Top prizes include an ATV and snowmobile. Oswald says the most commonly caught species during the derby are northern pike and walleye. Perch, burbot, and tullibee also make appearances. Anglers will have access to between 800 and 1,000 pre-drilled holes. The derby, which attracts participants from as far away as the Pacific Northwest, won a 2011 Manitoba Tourism Award for the First Nations community of Nelson House. Entry fee is $100 (Canadian), $80 if paid before April 4. For information, phone 204-484-2031 or 204-677-3031 or email [email protected].

Other Contests

The chamber of commerce of Lynn Lake in northern Manitoba will host the Great Northern Pike Live Release Fish Derby June 30 on nearby Berge Lake. First, second, and third prizes are $10,000 (Canadian), $1,000, and $500. Entry fee is $100. Information is available at http://www.lynnlake.ca and by calling 204-356-8017.

The southern Manitoba town of Gimli, cultural capital of the province's Icelandic community, will hold its annual Kids Fishing Derby on July 7 in its harbor on Lake Winnipeg. Kids catch whitefish, walleye, perch, and other species. Fishing tackle is awarded to first, second, and third-place winners. Admission is free, and all participants receive a commemorative medal. Information is available at 204-642-7929 or http://www.gimli.ca.

Anglers will try to land specially tagged northern pike and smallmouth bass at the Bissett Fishing Derby on Rice Lake August 4-6 in the southeastern Manitoba town of Bissett. Tagged fish can bring prizes ranging from $50 to $1,500. The entry fee is $20 (Canadian). For information, call (204) 277-5463.

For comprehensive information about sport fishing and hunting opportunities in Manitoba's "accessible wilderness" visit http://www.manitobamonsters.com or call Travel Manitoba at (800) 665-0040.