Mack Days anglers battle weather

 

October 1, 2020



Anglers continued the hunt for the $10,000 tagged fish as they launched on Flathead Lake over the weekend for the fourth week of the Fall Mack Days Fishing Event, sponsored by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. The total fish caught in the fall event so far is 6,661. Lonepine’s Mike Benson is in first place for the top anglers.

Saturday the winds were blowing most of the day on the east side of the lake. Some said it was the roughest day on the water for so few fish that landed in the boats in a long time. Anglers that were used to having full coolers were lucky to have enough to cover the bottom of the cooler. Trollers were able to get out of the winds around the islands and turned in some nice lake trout. Saturday’s total was at a hard caught 163 lake trout. Sunday there were sunny skies and calmer winds with 513 fish entered. Laurie Kreis had some bad luck and saw her fishing pole go overboard, even with the calmer weather. Jim Flinchbaugh lost a whole setup of line and lures. Fifteen minutes later he hooked up to something and reeled in his line that was lost. With the COVID-19 issue there is a shortage of supplies in some areas. He was happy to get back the line and lures.

There were $100 tagged lake trout turned in by Jeff Freeman of Polson, Bill Sorg of Kila, Mike Crosby of Thompson Falls, Roger Schiff of Whitefish, Larry Karper, Julie Perkins, and John Gauci. Winning the five $100 weekend electronic random drawings were Jim Flinchbaugh, Mike Benson, John Gauci, Julie Perkins, and Steve Mack from Helena.

Top 10 Anglers

1. Mike Benson, Lonepine, 490; 2. Kolton Turner, Kalispell, 344; 3. Scott Bombard, Missoula, 294; 4. Sam Cusker, Bigfork, 282; 5. Larry Ashwell, Missoula, 277; 6. Bob Turner, Kalispell, 273; 7. Terry Krogstad, Kalispell, 255; 8. Steve Benson, Spokane Valley, Washington, 233; 9. John Gauci, Florence, 2020; 10. Julie Perkins, Kalispell, 188.

Ladies

1. Julie Perkins, Kalispell, 188; 2. Laurie Kreis, Huson, 117; 3. Kim McMillie, Polson, and Gina Schiff, Whitesifh, 40; 5. Debby Sacchi, Thompson Falls, 28.

70 and Over

1. Larry Ashwell, Missoula, 277; 2. John Gauci, Florence, 202; 3. Larry Karper, Florence, 146; 4. Jack Kirkland, Missoula, 91; 5. Mary Herak, Polson, 72.

Age 13-17

1. Jeffrey Devlin, Polson, 14; 2. Makenna Garrett, Polson, 8.

Age 12 and Under

1. Tripp Bick, Arlee, 10; 2. Gage Spring, Alberton, 4; 3. Kaden Blowers, Missoula, and Brodie Smith, Kalispell, 1.

Entries continue to be taken until the last day of the event. Mack Days are used as a management tool to reduce numbers of non-native lake trout in Flathead Lake. Anglers asked for and are given the chance to be part of the management plan by participating in the events. Go to http://www.mackdays.com and click on the events tab for rules, fish identification, fishing tips and more. If you have any questions or concerns, contact Cindy Benson at (406) 270-3386 or (406) 883-2888, extension 7294.

 

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