Over the course of the last month, the Iowa Great Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and staff have been meeting regularly to monitor the COVID-19 situation in our region and across the country to assess its impact on the 38
th
Annual Iowa Great Lakes Walleye Weekend tournament. After much discussion with local government and the Department of Natural Resources about the rapidly evolving COVID-19 pandemic, we feel it is in the best interest of our visitors, volunteers, and locals to make the following changes to the tournament scheduled for May 2-3, 2020.
The Iowa Great Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors feel it is in the best interest of our community to cancel the main portion of the 2020 Walleye Weekend fishing tournament. If you've already registered for the 2020 Walleye Weekend tournament, registrations will be refunded. While the weekend’s events have been cancelled, the Extended Contest will remain open and occur as usual. All registrations for the Extended Contest must be completed online only at
www.okobojichamber.com
. The registration cut off is 11:55pm on Sunday, May 3
rd
. All rules and information on the extended contest can be found online.
The extended contest will run from Monday, May 4
th
until Monday, August 31
st
. Ten tagged walleye will be released into the chain of the Iowa Great Lakes. The first three tagged walleye caught during this contest will receive a percentage of the entry fees. The fisherman who catches the first tagged walleye will receive 20%, the second will receive 15% and the third will receive 10%. One tagged walleye was caught in 2019 and three were caught in 2018.
Walleye season will still open in the Iowa Great Lakes on May 2-3, 2020. For more information on fishing regulations and details, please reach out to the Iowa DNR. All participants are urged to continue practicing social distancing during this tournament. Please limit the number of fishermen on docks and boats as much as possible. We have the utmost concern for the health and safety of our community and visitors and feel that these changes are the best decision to keep our area safe. For more information or questions on this decision, please contact the Iowa Great Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce at 712-332-2107 or email
kiley@okobojichamber.com
.
