Tournament Summary: To determine the Waterdog tournament series champion, here is the ultimate test — a multi-species tournament offering up more than a dozen eligible species on what could be one of the most challenging waters to fish in the Upper Midwest — the confluence of the Mississippi and the Minnesota rivers. And for those who love wild cards, this tournament will feature bonus points for a handful of other rare species of fish that exist in these waters, but may be very difficult to fish.

Tournament Organizers: Kirk Duholm (cell: 612-718-9621) and Steve Dupont (cell: 612-916-4125)

Boat Ramp: Put in at the Lilydale Regional Park ramp off of Lilydale Road. Directions: From 35E, take the Hwy. 13 exit (Mendota Heights/Lilydale area). Go north on Hwy. 13 toward St. Paul. Less than a ~/2 mile from the Hwy. 13 exit, take a right on Lilydale Road. Go past the Lilydale Yacht Club and take a left into the ramp area — about a mile from the Club. It’s a double ramp with lots of parking. No dock, though. Make sure to lock up your vehicle because there are a lot of visitors to this park area. Watch for bikers — there are a lot of bikers who ride the Lilydale Road.

Tournament start: 7:00 a.m.

Tournament stop: 4:00 p.m.

Lunch: 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. at Hidden Falls Regional Park. Beach boats on sandy shore near boat ramp — make sure you have long rope to tie up to trees. Food will be provided by Famous Dave’s (special thanks to Dave Anderson’s son who will deliver it for us). Cost will be between $10-$15 per person.

Tournament Type: MegaTrash multi-species, catch and release only

Tournament Zone: From the Minnesota River at 35W Bridge (Bloomington) and the Mississippi River at the Ford Dam (St. Paul) down to Lock and Dam No. 2 near Hastings, Minn. This represents about 40 nautical miles of potential fishing area.

Scoring: Points are earned, based on size, for one fish in each eligible targeted species for each two person team. Bonus points also will be awarded for each targeted species caught. Super Bonus points will be awarded for rare species that are caught, regardless of size.

Walleye/Sauger/Saugeye - 14 in.
Largemouth Bass - 11 in.
Smallmouth Bass - 10 in.
White Bass - 9 in.
Northern Pike - 21 in.
Bluegill/sunfish - 7 in.
Crappie - 8 in.
Freshwater Drum (Sheephead) - 13 in.
Common Carp - 18 in.
Channel/Flathead Catfish - 15 in.
Muskie - 21 in.
Sturgeon - 20 in.

Number of species caught Bonus Points

1 - 10
2 - 25
3 - 45
4 - 70
5 - 100
6 - 135
7 - 150
8 - 220
9 - 270
10 - 325
11 - 380
12 - 450

Super Bonus Points: Catch any of the following species, regardless of size, earn +25 extra points: sucker, paddlefish, gar, yellow perch, dogfish, or other (need photo evidence).

Maps: The U.S. Corps of Army Engineers publishes navigation maps for the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers. Go to this web site to print off color navigational maps:

http://www2.mvr.usace.army.mil/omni/webrpts/nav_charts/navigation charts. html

Bait: Live bait is allowed. Recommend nightcrawlers, leeches, flathead minnows.

Gas: If you need gas while you’re on the water, there is a gas dock on Harriet Island that is operated by the St. Paul Yacht Club, and the Watergate Marina near Hidden Falls Park.

Team Pairings - as of Sept 14 at 9:26am
Captain -- Swabbie

Janitor -- Banana Boy
Shatner -- Greenstick
Kojak -- Carmen
Felix -- O.J.
Farm Boy -- Bud
O.F. - Juan
F.D. - Mama's Boy & Bertha (3-man team)
Perp -- Meat
Helen -- Griz
Suzy -- Nasty

Cautions --

• Swift Current, especially near the Ford Dam

• Deadheads

• Wing dams (often rock piles on sides of river)

• Sandbars (huge sandbar where Minnesota & Mississippi meet)

• Water conditions may change drastically from recent rain

Communication - marine radios

• Dogs use channel 68 for normal communication

• Channel 16 for emergencies with U.S. Coast Guard and Locks. The locks also monitor channel 14.

• Channel 22 for non-emergency communication with the U.S. Coast Guard