Field reports: Kolar ALS walleye contest is Saturday

By news@duluthnewstribune.com

May 26, 2012 11:00 PM

The annual Kolar Toyota ALS Walleye Tournament will be held Saturday on Island Lake. The event is a fund-raiser for the Minnesota/North Dakota/South Dakota chapter of the ALS Association. The group raises money to fight Lou Gehrig's Disease, or amytrophic lateral sclerosis.

A total of 129 boats (two-person teams) have entered so far, at $350 per boat. Last year, 146 teams took part and raised nearly $141,000. Sandy Judge of ALS Minnesota expects another 15 teams to sign up before the event.

Teams will begin going out in waves at 7 a.m. Saturday, and they'll check in to weigh their fish after fishing for seven hours. All of the fish caught in the contest are released, said Dave Solon, who helps coordinate the contest for Kolar Toyota.

First prize for the most walleyes by weight is three nights for four anglers at Evergreen Lodge on Lac Seul in Ontario.

A companion event held in Duluth, the Blackwoods Blizzard Tour, is a snowmobile tour in which riders raise money for ALS Minnesota. The 2012 event, held in early February despite a poor snow conditions, raised $782,000, Judge said. National Trails Day events scheduled

Several events will be held in the Duluth area on Saturday in conjunction with National Trails Day.

In Duluth, you can join local groups to do trail work throughout the city starting at 9 a.m. Saturday. Meet at the DWP Trail off Gogebic Street in West Duluth. No experience is necessary.

r The Superior Hiking Trail will hold two hikes starting at 10 a.m. on Saturday. The short one is a four-miler. Hike 2 miles from the Sucker River north of Duluth to a new campsite on the trail and hike back. The long one is 8.8 miles from the Sucker River to Normanna Road with a group car shuttle. No preregistration is required. Meet at Sucker River Trailhead parking lot. Go to www.shta.org for directions.

The Superior Hiking Trail also seeks volunteers to help replace two bridges near the Blueberry Hill road. Register by Thursday to take part in hauling lumber to the site, about one-half mile. Then meet at 9 a.m. Saturday at the Twin Points parking lot on Minnesota Highway 61 to carpool to the site. Visit a Wisconsin park for free on June 3

People visiting Wisconsin State Parks on June 3 will enjoy free admission.

Visitors to one of the 49 parks participating in the "Read to Lead at Wisconsin State Parks" program can check out a book paired with that park intended to help them learn more about nature and the environment. The weekend of June 2 and 3 also is "Free Fishing Weekend" in Wisconsin. A fishing license, an inland trout stamp and a Great Lakes trout stamp are not needed on these days for Wisconsin residents or nonresidents.

Field reports: Kolar ALS walleye contest is Saturday

The annual Kolar Toyota ALS Walleye Tournament will be held Saturday on Island Lake. The event is a fund-raiser for the Minnesota/North Dakota/South Dakota chapter of the ALS Association. The group raises money to fight Lou Gehrig's Disease, or a...