Fishing for success

MOSES LAKE — After spending 20 years fishing in tournaments, Aaron Echternkamp is facing the most prestigious and difficult challenge of his life.

The Moses Lake resident is traveling May 30 to Louisville, Ky., where he fishes the Ohio River for the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League All American Championship.

"That river system's known to be tough," Echternkamp said.

He has a chance to win up to $140,000 for first place.

If he wins the championship, he can compete in the largest fishing tournament in the nation, the Forrest Wood Cup Championship, which offers a first-place prize of $1 million.

Although Echternkamp, 34, began fishing in tournaments when he was 14 years old, he only recently began pursuing larger tournaments to turn his passion into a career.

"It's way more than a hobby," he said. "I've just been trying to pursue it more."

Qualifying for the all-American championship took the last two years. In 2006, he was named state champion for The Bass Federation's Western Division Championship in Idaho.

As top finisher of Washington, Echternkamp qualified for The Bass Federation National Championship on the border of North and South Carolina, which was held April 19-21.

President and CEO of The Bass Federation Robert Cartlidge said just 36 people in the country qualified for the national tournament out of 22,000 members.

Echternkamp placed fourth nationally and is hoping to place first in the all-American championship on the Ohio River.

"That river system's known to be tough," he said.

Cartlidge described Echternkamp as a clean-cut and well-spoken family man, qualities which are attractive to sponsors. He lives in Moses Lake with his wife, Lisa, and sons Mason and Carter.

He has the fishing skills to back up his personality, Cartlidge said.

"I think one of his strengths, whether he recognizes it or not, is he's got what it takes to make a living fishing," he said.

The Bass Federation and Forrest L. Wood Programs Manager David Simmons said Echternkamp is a skilled fisher. Spending two years competing in the divisional and national championships takes commitment, Simmons said.

"(It) takes a lot of dedication and perseverance to compete that long," he said.

The biggest fish Echternkamp caught was an 11-pound, 14-ounce bass in 2002 from Clear Lake, Calif. Although it wasn't taken from Moses Lake, Simmons enjoys Moses Lake for the consistently large fish.

"It's not uncommon to catch an eight-pound large mouth on this lake at all," he said.

The quality of fishing in Eastern Washington was a major reason he moved from Auburn to Moses Lake in 1997.

For most of his fishing journey, Echternkamp competed in smaller competitions locally. But he wants his career to take off, and he hopes his foot is in the door.

Because of the prestige of the event, the memorable tournament of his career was the national tournament, where he placed fourth. The competition is televised on Fox Sports Network May 27 at 9 a.m.

"It was just a good taste of the big league stuff," Echternkamp said.