Reminiscent of the largest catch in K/D Salmon Tournament history nearly 20 years ago, John Peters of New London was fishing at noon Sunday — a time many twice-a-day anglers were napping, or perhaps enjoying lunch on shore — when a whopper of a salmon smacked a fly down deep off Kewaunee.
While not nearly as huge as the 40-pounder pulled in by the late Ed Steffen of Fish Creek off Rowley's Bay during a “nooner” trip in the early 1990s, Peters’ prize, a 38-inch, 26.20-pounder, is indeed a monster-sized salmon in a year where 20-pounders are rare.
Through opening weekend of the nine-day event, only five 20-pound-plus chinooks had been put to certified scales. Baileys Harbor and Washington Island combined to weigh 25 of the top 40 through the first two days. Will that trend continue? It’s hard to say, but one thing is for sure: while Peters has a four-pound-plus lead on the rest of the field, there are plenty of big salmon still waiting to be caught. Many years, some of the largest are hooked during the week when angling pressure is lighter.
Many of the top fish were caught 50 to 100 feet down over 100 to 200 feet of water, with a few even deeper. Flies, spoons and plugs have all been listed as baits of choice on the weigh-in sheets, with the usual mix of green, blue, silver, black and glow among the colors listed.
New fish also moved into the second through fourth place spots, including Aaron Bresnahan’s 22-pounder off Washington Island. A pair of 21's were reeled in off Kewaunee and Baileys Harbor.
Entry fee is $25 for the full tournament or $13 for a daily chance. If taking a charter, all others on the boat — including the captain and first mate — must have tickets.
First place is $10,000 cash, a free mount of the winning fish by Scott Mansur’s Northland Taxidermy of Algoma and a custom sterling silver chinook salmon ring with a diamond eye by Paul Spanbauer of wisconsincharm.com.
In addition to a deep payout that always goes down more than 100 places, there are 45 daily port prizes valued at more than $100 each at all five weigh-in sites in Algoma, Baileys Harbor, Kewaunee, Sturgeon Bay and Washington Island. Tickets and K/D merchandise are available at Kap’s Marina on Washington Island, 57 Depot in Baileys Harbor, Hol-N-One Mobil, GreyStone Castle and Howie’s Tackle in Sturgeon Bay, Algoma BP, and the Kewaunee Marina and Lakeshore Lighthouse in Kewaunee.
K/D Top 40 as of 7/22/12
John Peters, 26.20 @ Kewaunee
Aaron Bresnahan, 22.00 @ Washington Island
Jeremy Jackson, 21.35 @ K
Brian Kalberg, 21.02 @ Baileys Harbor
Heath Peters, 20.30 @ WI
Mike Holter, 19.82 @ WI
Welcome Kubisidh, 19.80 @ BH
Kyle Sever, 19.77 @ BH
Andrew Wegner, 19.60 @ WI
Jerry Cefalu, 19.37 @ Sturgeon Bay
John Berken, 19.18 @ BH
Joe Vober, 18.65 @ WI
Keith Kuchta, 18.57 @ BH
Dan Gregoire, 18.55 @ K
Terry Bosman, 18.49 @ SB
Robert Carlson, 18.30 @ K
Mark Wacha1, 18.26 @ Algoma
Rob Christensen, 17.97 @ WI
Stefanny Thorn, 17.97 @ BH
Erich Stoffel, 17.97 @ BH
Jeff Gunnlaugson, 17.96 @ WI
Josh Berken, 17.85 @ BH
Larry Strewlow, 17.85 @ BH
Al Smisek, 17.82 @ A
Aaron Luedtke, 17.70 @ SB
Jesse Madoche, 17.62 @ SB
Andrew Berken, 17.59 @ BH
Thomas Tasker, 17.54 @ BH
James Humpurey, 17.51 @ K
John Reinke, 17.51 @ BH
Roger Stein, 17.47 @ WI
Steph Mellesmoen, 17.42 @ BH
Dan Collin, 17.31 @ K
Travis Hall, 17.31 @ BH
Henry Saperstein, 17.31 @ BH
Jeremy Schaefer, 17.20 @ WI
Jeff Gunnlaugson, 17.17 @ WI
Deb Connell, 17.08 @ SB
Eric Thoreson, 17.03 @ SB
Daniel Gazella, 17.00 @ K
Sunday’s port prize winners
A: Mark Wachal, 18.26; BH: Brian Kalberg, 21.02; K: John Peters, 26.20; SB: Terry Bosman, 18.49; WI: Aaron Bresnahan, 22.00.
