This weekend is the 33rd International Eelpout Festival in Walker, Minnesota on Leech Lake. It doesn’t get much more Minnesotan than this! Many folks have been worried it may be cancelled due to the warm, snowless winter but the show is going on, the only restriction will be that vehicles aren’t allowed on the ice and activities will be held much closer to shore.
What in the world is this you are probably asking? It is a massive ice fishing event that attracts some 10,000 people each year! The Eelpout fish is supposedly one of the ugliest fish on the planet and if you catch one and kiss it, it will bring you luck. They also say that winter is the best time to catch eelpout and that is why they hold this competition in the winter and not in the summer months.
If you don’t want to fish, there are other activities including a car race, a polar plunge, food and drinks, live bands in the evenings and much more! It is just another example of the wild and crazy outdoor activities we Minnesotans participate in to keep our spirits up in the normally cold and snowy winter!
