Lake Winnebago Offers Challenge to GNWC Anglers
By Steve Weisman
GNWC Publicity Director
With the Wisconsin Region of the Grand National Walleye Cup (GNWC)
entering the third tournament of the year, the Lake Winnebago Tournament set
for Sunday, June 5 looks to be a crucial one for the teams striving to make
the Regional Championship on the Minoqua Chain, September 10-11.
Heading into the Lake Winnebago Tournament, the team of John Bella and
Joe Besiada from Stevens Point, WI have taken the lead in the race for the
Wisconsin Region Yamaha Team of the Year honors with 11 points. The team of
Robert Blosser and Gary Thomlinson from Poynette, WI is close behind with 13
points.
“The Winnebago Tournament should be a great one for the GNWC teams,”
noted GNWC Executive Director Bernie Barringer. “We have a great race
shaping up for the Yamaha Team of the Year award, and I know that Lake
Winnebago will provide some interesting challenges for the competing teams.”
The Winnebago system is actually a series of lakes and rivers. Including
the lakes of Winnebago, Butte des Morts, Winneconne, Poygan and the Fox and
Wolf Rivers. DNR officials note that there are excellent walleye numbers
with some huge fish still around from the record walleye hatches in the 90s.
According to Ed Lemke, owner of Tews Two Sporting Goods, the host
baitshop for the Lake Winnebago Tournament, this is an excellent walleye
fishery. However, he warns, “Lake Winnebago is a lake you have to figure
out. If the wind has been down for several days, you will be able to see
your anchor in eight feet of water, but if it has been windy, it will be
totally different.”
Lemke added that pre-fishing will be very important. “By June 5, I
expect that it will be a trolling bite. However, the key is to figure out
where the fish will be. They might be in the weeds, out in the muck, or
along the reefs.” In other words, it’s going to take some homework to be a
contender at this tournament.
The tournament director will have the trailer at Rainbow Park from 6-8
p.m. the evening before the tournament to take late entries and answer
questions. Take-off is at 7 a.m. with the weigh-in commencing at 3 p.m.
sharp at Rainbow Park.
“The weigh-in should be an exciting event. I encourage the public to
come out and witness the weigh-in, and even though it starts at 3, it’s a
good idea to come out early. It’s free to the public, fun and educational.
We will also have a couple of Aqua-Vu underwater cameras set up in our
release tanks so that the public can see how they work. The audience will
get the chance to see how these teams pinpointed the walleyes and what
pattern they used to catch their fish,” added Barringer.
For those interested in entering, the entry fee remains at $210 per team
for each tournament. Openings do still exist for the Lake Winnebago
qualifier, and Barringer encourages interested anglers to contact him at
1-800-890-FISH (3474), or email the GNWC at [email protected]. “I also
encourage people to check out our website at http://www.walleyecup.com. There are
some very exciting races going on in each of the seven regions,” added
Barringer.
Major national sponsors for the GNWC include Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
Outboards, Lowrance Electronics, YoNet Folding Nets by AMFYOYO, Aqua-VU,
Aqua Innovations, Cabela’s and UpNorthOutdoors.com. National championship
sponsors are Towtector Shield and the VIB”E” Lure Company.