QVTB offers $15,000 in prizes for fishing derby
The Northern Pikeminnow Fishing Derby at Quincy, slated for Sept. 24-25, is not the first effort by the Quincy Valley Tourism Board to promote western Grant County to visitors, nor will it be the last.
The Northern Pikeminnow Fishing Derby at Quincy, slated for Sept. 24-25, is not the first effort by the Quincy Valley Tourism Board to promote western Grant County to visitors, nor will it be the last. The informational kiosk is located at the Gorge Amphitheater. The QVTB helped with George's Rock N Ride event this summer and will assist at the Quincy Valley Wine Festival on Sept. 10.
CRESCENT BAR - There will be up to $15,000 in cash prizes and additional non-cash prizes when the Quincy Valley Tourism Board stages its first Northern Pikeminnow Fishing Derby at Quincy at Crescent Bar on Sept. 24-25.
The fishing derby will serve a dual purpose. It will be tourism event for the QVTB, and it will rid the Columbia River of a fish that destroys the salmon population. Federal and state agencies and northwest Native American tribes have given the derby their blessing.
"They don't want any of them, to be truthful," said QVTB chair Pat Curran.
According to Curran, government agencies have been paying professional fisherman as much as $8 per fish to catch the NP. They were eager to support the derby idea.
"This is a service and fun event," Curran said. "The idea is to catch the most possible."
The Northern Pikeminnow go where salmon fingerlings are found, Curran said. They migrate from dam pool to dam pool. They grow as big as 24-30 inches and devour a lot fingerlings.
Derby contestants will be able to fish anywhere from Wanapum Dam to Rock Island Dam, Curran said. The rules will be laid out for them at a 6:30 p.m. meeting on Sept. 23 at Crescent Bar, exact site to be announced. The prize give-aways will start that evening with drawings.
The Fishin' Magician, Dave Graybill, who appears in the Crescent Bar Chronicle, will make a visit to the Derby, Curran said.
The cash prizes won't necessarily be easy to snag. Ten fish will be tagged before the derby. Contestants who catch one of those will be in line for money.
There will be additional prizes worth up to $10,000, Curran said. They could be cash or non-cash. Among those will be largest fish caught and the most fish caught.
In addition to being a tourism event, the derby will be a fund-raiser for the QVTB. The $20 entry fee per fisherman will go to that organization. Youths under the age of 16 will compete for free. There will be two age-group prize categories - adult and youth.
Until Labor Day, registration will be done online at the QVTB site or live at the Quincy Valley Chamber of Commerce. There will be additional registration sites after Labor Day, and registrations will be taken the evening of the 23rd.