Dan Krauth points us to this article in the Globe Gazette about the Walleye Classic that begins at Clear Lake, IA this coming weekend:
CLEAR LAKE — One hundred two-person angling teams will be aiming for quality over quantity when the Clear Lake Fishing Club’s 23rd Annual Clear Lake Walleye Classic kicks off on Saturday, May 19. Boats will leave from the Sea Wall at City Park in two flights at 7 and 7:15 a.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. The public is invited to watch the weigh-in at the band shell beginning at 3 p.m. each day. Teams can bring up to five fish to the scale each day with rankings determined based on total weight. They will be competing for nearly $15,000 in prize money as well as an optional largest fish pot, which normally pays $500 per day. Last year anglers turned in more than 600 walleyes, with 31 of the 100 teams weighing in the maximum 10 fish. Based on
angling success thus far, a similar performance next weekend seems likely. “The walleye fishing has been great,” said DNR Fisheries Biologist Scott Grummer, “even better than I expected.” Grummer said the lake offers an abundance of walleyes anywhere from 10 to 19 inches as well as many measuring 20 to 25 inches. (Clear Lake has a three-fish daily possession limit with a
14-inch minimum, only one of which may be over 22 inches.) He noted the smaller fish tend to feed more frequently and aggressively, meaning anglers will likely catch lots of “short” fish. Most “keepers” will range from 14 to 17 inches with a few up to 19. That’s held true so far this spring, according to Dan Krauth, who owns The Crazy Minnow Co. bait shop and serves as secretary of the fishing club. “You’ve got to sort (smaller walleyes), but there’s a lot of 14-19-inch fish.”
Dan keeps us up to date with the latest fishing reports out of Clear Lake and we really look forward to hearing how this latest promotion of the area goes. Thanks Dan!
