An annual ice fishing derby in northern Saskatchewan has grown from small beginnings to being one of the largest ice fishing tournaments in the country, with organizers setting their sights on surpassing the bigger ones in the United States.
The Montreal Lake Walleye Derby is hosted every March by Montreal Lake Cree Nation (MLCN), about 250 kilometres north of Saskatoon.
The setting for the March 23 derby is deep in the boreal forest of northern Saskatchewan.
Last year, over 2,600 anglers, mostly from Western Canada, turned out for the event, and this year organizers are hoping for 2,700 to 2,800 participants. Attractions include music, food vendors, hourly 50/50 draws, and more.
“Every year since we’ve hosted this event, we’ve got more and more [people] every year. Every year it gets bigger,” said MLCN Vice-Chief Dean Henderson, one of the organizers.
“If you haven’t been here, come on out and experience what it’s like because it’s actually a lot of fun.”
While ice fishing may not be for everyone, those who do it love it.
An angler lowers a lure into the water through a hole drilled or chopped in the ice and waits for a fish to bite. Sometimes you can wait hours before getting anything. But it can also be a peaceful way to spend some time in nature, provided you are dressed warmly.
In fishing derbies like Montreal Lake, anglers compete for various prizes. The grand prize in the Montreal Lake Walleye Derby, worth $100,000, is for whoever catches the largest walleye. Second prize in that category is $25,000. But there are lots of other prizes as well, including a $20,000 prize for whoever catches the heaviest fish excluding walleye—such as a northern pike.
It’s a catch-and-release event, which means fishing is done with barbless hooks, and after the fish caught get weighed, the weight is recorded and then the fish is returned to the lake unharmed.
All of this is being organized by MLCN, which has a membership of some 2,200 people in the nearby community of Montreal Lake, and more band members on several other reserves in the region.
The derby is held on a cleared-off section of Montreal Lake. That’s where the holes for the anglers are drilled, and the entertainment, food vendors, and other attractions are either on the ice or the nearby shore.
The derby primarily draws people from western Canada—Saskatchewan, Alberta, B.C., and Manitoba—said Mr. Henderson. But there are sometimes groups from Ontario, and even further.
“We get people from all over. We’ve even had visitors from Mexico, Australia … we’ve had people come up that are fishermen from Minnesota,” he said.
He believes part of the reason is because it’s a well-run, enjoyable event. But another reason, he said, are the prizes.
Last year, the $100,000 winning fish was a walleye weighing approximately 4.7 pounds, caught by a man from Red Deer, Alberta. It’s a good size for a walleye, but not even close to record-setting.
And the grand prize-winner’s friend, also from Red Deer, took home $20,000 for catching the heaviest non-walleye fish—a northern pike weighing just over 8 pounds.
Up to 4,000 Ice Holes Drilled
All the action takes place on the lake between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. on March 23. People pick out a hole in the ice that has been pre-drilled. Then they fish and hope for the best.“We drill probably 3,500 to 4,000 holes, so when a fisherman comes and he enters the derby, he finds his hole. He doesn’t have to stay at that hole. He can go and move around and find other holes,” said Mr. Henderson.
Mr. Henderson added they have crews of local people doing everything from drilling the holes with ice augers to handling security and traffic. They need approximately 40 people just to drill all the holes.
Then it’s the angler’s turn to pick a hole, let down a hook, and hope a fish bites.
Advance tickets cost $150 to enter, and it’s $175 if you register onsite. The derby, now in its 16th year, has become a major fundraiser for education and sports programs on Montreal Lake Cree Nation.
For example, students from nearby Senator Allan Bird Memorial School help with the hourly 50/50 draws, with the money going to things like year-end trips. In a 50/50 draw, 50 percent of the ticket revenue goes to the winning ticket holder and 50 percent goes to a charity or cause.
“There are people that come here, they don’t even come to fish, they come to visit, and they come to enter the 50/50 draws. We have 50/50 draws every hour, and this last year, there were over $10,000 draws,” said Mr. Henderson, generating a total of about $106,000.
Mr. Henderson said the total value of prizes in 2024 is expected to exceed $200,000—and that does not include the 50/50 draws. All of this, they believe, makes the Montreal Lake tournament the biggest in the country in terms of cash prizes.
There are other big tournaments in North America, and many smaller ones. For example, in Minnesota, the Brainerd Ice Fishing Extravaganza attracted more than 12,000 people last year.
Mr. Henderson says they now rank among the top in terms of prize money, and have even been told they have a shot at being the “largest ice fishing tournament in the world.”
But numbers aside, Montreal Lake Walleye Derby represents a significant accomplishment for a relatively small community in northern Saskatchewan.
“There’s a lot of work goes into all the preparation,” said Mr. Henderson, adding the planning starts for next year as soon as this year is over. “We’re just always trying to make it bigger.”
