While 174 anglers will be out on the river trying to land prize-winning fish this Friday and Saturday, there will be a great deal of fun caught by everyone else at the ninth-annual Rainy River Walleye Tournament.
After the parade of boats Thursday evening, popular local band “The Nitehawks” will entertain under the big tent starting at 9 p.m.
On Friday morning, the anglers will leave from the Rainy River Marina at 8:45 a.m., 9 a.m., and 9:15 a.m.
For the general public, activities will begin at noon under the big tent with the beer gardens opening and a pay-as-you-go Bingo.
The Rainy River Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a mini-trade show at the tent from 1-5 p.m. Also opening at 1 p.m. will be penny tables on which many great prizes can be won.
At 4:45 p.m., the anglers begin returning from fishing and the Day 1 weigh-ins, hosted by new emcee Paul Morrison of Fort Frances.
At 6 p.m. the public and anglers can feast on walleye as a fish fry is held at the tent.
Later that evening, DJ Chopper will be back in Rainy River for the first time since the early days of “Railroad Daze.” He was a huge hit back then and promises to be just as much fun this time around.
The anglers will be up a bit earlier on Saturday as they have 7:45 a.m., 8 a.m., and 8:15 a.m. departure times for the final day of fishing and a chance at the $15,000 top prize.
Activities also will start earlier that day. Kids’ games and face-painting will get underway at 10 a.m., followed by the increasingly popular “Kids RRWT” at 11 a.m.
Last year’s champ, Perry Lachance, has vowed to defend his title again this year.
The beer gardens open at noon once again, then and at 12:30 p.m. Chopper will provide some more entertainment from 12:30-2 p.m.
The final weigh-in will begin at 3:15 p.m. on Saturday. Within an hour or so, a new RRWT champion will be crowned and following that will be the official awards presentations.
Second prize is worth $7,500, followed by third place ($3,500), fourth place ($2,800), fifth place ($2,000), sixth place ($1,400), seventh place ($1,300), eighth place ($1,200), ninth place ($1,100), and 10th place ($1,000).
11th- through 15th place will be worth $700, $600, $500, $400, and $300, respectively.
Other prizes up for grabs include hidden weights for both days ($300 each), big fish for both days ($500 each), early-bird ($1,000), river champ ($600), and top Princecraft team ($1,000).
The Lionel Robert Memorial Award for biggest basket of the tournament is worth $1,000. As well, 10 prizes of $100 will be awarded from the parade of boats.
The total prize payout for this year’s RRWT is $45,500.
After all the excitement of fishing is over on Saturday, the Rainy River Legion will host its world famous steak fry again this year.
Draws for the boat raffle and penny tables will follow the awards presentation.
Then “Thinking of Pinky” will play under the big tent Saturday night to wrap up the weekend.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
