Slides From The Opener

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Here are some great photos from the MN Governor Fishing Opener event on Lake Waconia. As you can see we had great weather and a great day on the water. A big thank you to Joe Ringus for taking these shots. If you need photo's for anything feel free to reach out to Joe. He is great and will get you taken care of.
The Crestliner boat that I am fishing out of was provided by them as a sponsor of the event, Travis and I fished from those for the day. I can tell you I was missing my usual set-up-Ranger pretty bad. It's hard to get settled into a different rig in 1 day and understand how to run it. All in all though the event was great, the city of Waconia was great, and all the people involved did an amazing job to make this a success!

The Governor's Opener On Lake Waconia

Here is the fish that made the night.  Yes, this walleye was a feature of the evening and the only walleye that our boat landed on opening night of fishing for the 2012 MN Governor's Fishing Opener.  I fished with LT Governor Yvonne Prettner Solon and a few of her staff members.  We were able to snatch this one nice walleye measuring in at 19".  

With high expectations we hit the waters of Lake Waconia at midnight in search of the elusive state fish.  After fishing our first couple area's with shallow running shad rapala's and not having the success as planned we switched gears and headed to one last spot on the way in.  About 1:30 a.m. or so Blake (her press secretary) was able to land this nice walleye.  It was a great looking state fish and also put smiles on all our faces.  Needless to say we were all ready for a few hours sleep before getting up and doing it all again the next day.  

This was my attempt at teaching Blake how to hold a fish the correct way for a photo.  At one point I made the comment, "you are not making love to it"!  Got lots of laughs out of everyone, but really I was just trying to teach him the proper way for a healthy release after taking a photo.  The prized golden raw rye was released to swim another day and fight another fight.  We were all glad that Lake Waconia had cooperated enough that the state fish was landed and witnessed by all.

That morning we did go back out about 8 a.m. and caught sheepshead, bass, crappies, perch, and sunnies.  We did not catch any more walleyes, but we had a great time trying.   

I can't say enough good things about how great Yvonne and her entire staff were.  They were a pleasure to coordinate with, work with, and even better to fish with.  I have to say thanks to them for being troopers and going out at midnight.  It made for a long day on the water the next day with no sleep but worth it to see the smiles, laughs, and memories that we made.  Until next time-take a kid fishing and Fish On!  

The Bay

Have lots to talk about, including the governors opener, sturgeon bay, and much more. But in the mean time check out these giant sturgeon bay smallmouth! Place is incredible, we weighed 50 lbs over 2 days and finished 57th out of 146 boats.

Don't forget your camera tonight...

For those of you that have always wanted to experience the thrill of a guided trip with me, here's your chance.

Show us your catch in our photo contest for a chance to win a Grand Prize of a guided trip with Pro Angler and Host for the 2012 Governor's Fishing Opener, Matt Peters!

Submit a photo and caption of you and your catch - whether it be a walleye from the Opener or any other favorite shot to my Facebook Photo Contest. You can submit as many photos as you like by the submission end date, but the sooner you post your entry the longer you have to gather votes. Get your friends and family to vote for your entry, and the top 4 photos with the most votes win. Voting begins at 12:00 midnight on May 12, 2012, and all entries and votes must be in by 6:00 p.m. CST on Thursday, May 24, 2012. One vote per day. Winners will be announced on Friday, May 25, 2012. Good luck and fish on!