Outdoors with Larry DiDonato - Annual Kids Ice Fishing Derby a Success

The 37th Annual Children’s Ice Fishing Derby was held at Tannersville Lake on February 23rd was a resounding success by all accounts. The Catskill Mountain Fish & Game Club in conjunction with the Stony Clove Rod and Gun Club, hosted the annual event at Rip Van Winkle/Tannersville Lake this past Sunday. 

 Kids up to 16 years of age competed in either the junior or senior divisions. The clubs provide live bait and refreshments throughout the day and local ECO Jason Smith joined the cadre of volunteers there to assist. Longtime president of the Catskill Mountain Fish and Game Club, Bob Monteleone, said, “We had by far, the highest number of kids participating in the derby since we started the event 37 years ago. 122 kids registered and fished while volunteers from the Stony Clove Rod & Gund Club were busy at the grill serving the nearly 300 people in attendance.”  Drilling holes through the 12-inch-thick ice on the lake for 122 kids presented an unprecedented challenge, but volunteers from the Catskill Mountain Fish and Game Club and Stony Clove Rod and Gun Club rose to the occasion. Bob went on to thank all the volunteers who pulled together to make the derby a success. He also thanked those who donated to the kid’s ice fishing derby. Donors included, the Town of Hunter, the Hunter Civic Association, the Greene County Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs, the New York Conservation Officers Association, the Church Communities of Platte Cove, Kevin Thompson Excavation, and Mr. George Kelly.

The Winners

 66 fish were caught that day including the lunker, a 25-inch pickerel hauled in by 5-year-old, Miles Wamsley who won for largest fish in the Junior Division. That division saw 9-year-old, Lucas Nordhal and 8-year-old Megan Velonis tie for catching the most fish, while 10-year-old, Vladimer Yevtushenko won for catching the smallest fish. In the Senior Division, 13-year-old, Danielle Mellott won for largest fish with a 23-inch pickerel, while Izzy Hall, also 13, won for landing the smallest fish. 11-year-old, Zack Nordhal took the prize for catching the most fish in the Senior Division. While these members of the two divisions brought home trophies, all kids present were winners and each given a prize whether they caught fish or not.  

 It's great to see a high level of interest and participation in such a traditional outdoor activity. I’ll bet all the kids and most of the adults didn’t have much time to look at their phones as they were busy enjoying a day out on the ice, fishing.

Happy hunting, fishing, and trapping, until next time!

News and Notes

Get Your Tickets for the Ducks Unlimited -Greene County Chapter Banquet on March 8th  

The Greene County Chapter of Ducks Unlimited is holding its annual banquet, dinner and auction on Saturday, March 8th at Anthony’s Banquet Hall located at 746 County Route 23B in Leeds. Doors open at 3:30 pm with buffet dinner starting at 5:00 pm, followed by a live auction. Tickets are available online at www.ducks.org/newyork/events. For more information you can call Dana Hanusik at 518-821-1773 or Jeff Holiday at 965-6105. 

Remember to report poaching violations by calling the 24-hour ECO Dispatch at: 

1-844-DEC-ECOS.