2020 Muskie Stocking Update

Here is a note from Scott Hale:

Ohio Muskie Anglers,

This week the ODNR Division of Wildlife completed muskie stockings for 2020.  The current program stocking goal of 19,890 was exceeded and fish averaged 10.8 inches. This was made possible through the generosity of our neighbors at the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission who provided us with 3-4 inch fingerlings earlier in the year, the continued support of Ohio’s muskie clubs through the Minnow Fund, and the hard work and dedication of our hatchery staff that grew these fish out to stocking size and transported them safely to our reservoirs. Although stocking happened a little later than usual this year, the fish likely benefited from being handled, transported, and stocked in cooler water and weather. The table below provides the details.

Thanks to everyone that made this possible during a particularly challenging year.

All the best,

Scott

     
RESERVOIR ACRES NUMBER STOCKED
ALUM CREEK LAKE 3,331 3,760
C.J. BROWN RESERVOIR 1,964 2,032
CAESAR CREEK LAKE 2,806 3,006
CLEARFORK RESERVOIR 1,033 1,204
LAKE MILTON 1,694 1,828
LEESVILLE LAKE 1,011 1,049
PIEDMONT LAKE 2,370 2,375
SALT FORK LAKE 3,060 3,660
WEST BRANCH RESERVOIR 2,621 2,730
TOTAL   21,644

 

Muskie Munch Results

Well…..after a 30 degree drop in temperatures, and all night rain….only the brave ventured forth to take on the Muskie Munch at Piedmont.  A total of nine hearty anglers signed up to test their skills against Mother Nature and the Muskies.  Only Jerry Rice with a 34′ muskie and our winner, David Cross with a 37.5″ muskie were able to fill the net.

We would like to thank all the anglers who supported our events this year.  Hopefully next year will be a return to a more normal fishing experience.

Our Banquet is scheduled for Saturday, March 20th at the SYB Party Center.  Last year, this proved to be a great venue.  What ever is happening with Covid, we should have plenty of room for social distancing.  See you then.

 

Piedmont Muskie Munch October 24

The final OHMC event of 2020 will be the Muskie Munch at Piedmont on Saturday, October 24.   This event was originally scheduled for Salt Fork but has been moved to Piedmont Lake.  Piedmont has been on fire the last 30 days, with 3 fish over 50” being caught that we know.  This one-day tournament is a big fish tournament with the winner catching the longest fish of the day.

The event will begin at 7:30 am on Saturday and concludes at 5 pm.  The winning fish has to be at least 30 inches or greater.  The 1st place winner and any ties will receive trophies at our 2021 Banquet.  All fish must be turned into the Tournament Director by 5:30 pm at the Piedmont Marina parking lot.

The campground at Piedmont will be open for those who want to make a weekend of the event.  Here is the site to make a reservation:

https://www.camplife.com/551/reservation/step1

You can register for the event one of 3 ways:

Register online at

https://fs11.formsite.com/N2PLlu/k4ykxxniol/index.html

the online registration includes payment thru PayPal.

Or, Mail your registration to OHMC, 17712 Edgewater, Lakewood, Ohio 44107,

Or, register in person Saturday morning from 7 am to 8 am in the Piedmont Marina parking lot.  We will be observing best practices for Covid 19 during registration.

We encourage registration online or by mail to respect the risks due to Covid 19.

The entry fee will be $15 and there will be a big fish pool entry of $5.   Proceeds of this tournament will help fund the club’s contribution to the Minnow Fund.  Currently the club’s Minnow Fund has over $4,000 saved for next year’s purchase.

We look forward to seeing you all there.

Here are the rules for the event

Piedmont Muskie Munch Rules RV1

 

Minnow Fund Outing Results

What a great weekend…..The Tribe clinches home field for the playoffs, the Browns win big at home, and the weather was absolutely gorgeous for a muskie fishing tournament at West Branch.  A total of 49 anglers signed up to fish the Minnow Fund.  With the money raised this weekend and past events and donations, OHMC has over $4,000 to contribute to next year’s ODNR stocking effort.

The muskies were caught, probably not as many as we would have hoped, but 14 legal fish came to the net.  The winner of the event with a 37.75″, 37.5″ and 32.5″ was Jeff Belcher.  You will have to talk with Jeff to find our his secrets for putting fish in the boat.  Second Place with two fish, 38″ and 35″ was John Proch.  OHMC has records going back to 1961, not sure this is a first, but John caught all of his fish from a kayak.  Given the success of a number of our members with kayaks, they clearly are a force.

Big fish was caught by our Past President, Fred Lederer with a 44.5″ beast earning Fred a pool payout of $225.

The remaining fish caught are:

Jerry Rice 31.75″

Jeff Ferjutz  36.75″

Ray Elkins  36.75″ and 33.5″

Daniel Bruyrie  35″

Jeff Giles  33″

Jeff Dvorak  38″

Joe Tenebria  34″

A big thank you for all who came out and supported the event.  Our next event is the Muskie Munch October 24 at Salt Fork Lake.  This is a one day event where the longest fish caught is the winner.

 

 

 

 

8th Annual Minnow Fund Outing at West Branch

Time for the 8th Annual Minnow Fund outing to be held on September 26th and 27th at West Branch.  The preturnover shallow bite should be in full swing by then meaning there will be a lot of opportunities for numbers of fish and big fish.

The event will begin at 8 am on Saturday and concludes at 3 pm on Sunday.  All fish 30 inches or greater will count and be scored using the standard Muskies Inc. method.  Winners of 1st place and 2nd place will receive trophies at our 2021 Banquet.  All fish must be turned into the Tournament Director by 3:30 pm at the parking lot located directly across from the campsite office at West Branch.

There is camping available at West Branch.  Here is the site to make a reservation:

https://ohiodnr.gov/wps/portal/gov/odnr/go-and-do/plan-a-visit/find-a-property/west-branch-state-park

You can register for the event one of 3 ways:

Register online at

https://fs11.formsite.com/N2PLlu/ivt1xxsyyd/index.html

the online registration includes payment thru PayPal.

Or, Mail your registration to OHMC, 17712 Edgewater, Lakewood, Ohio 44107,

Or, register in person Saturday morning from 6 am to 8 am in the parking lot directly across from the campsite office at West Branch; look for our canopy.  Due to Covid restrictions, there will be no registration Friday evening at the campsites. We will be observing best practices for Covid 19 during registration.

We encourage registration online or by mail to respect the risks due to Covid 19.  In that light, we will not be providing a fish fry Friday night nor a meal Saturday night which is what has been done in the past.

The entry fee will be $20 and there will be a big fish pool entry of $5.   Entry fees and money raised will be directly deposited to the Minnow Fund.   In the past 7 years, we have donated over $43,000 to the stocking efforts in Ohio.   Thank you for your support which has made this a reality.

We look forward to seeing you all there.

Here are the rules for the event.

2020 Minnow Fund Outing Rules

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