Riverdale, North Dakota angler Lonnie Liebel has been fishing the Missouri River area below massive 307,000-acre Sakakawea Lake for 50 years. The 71-year-old veteran angler was fishing for walleyes in the tailrace below the dam creating Sakakawea Lake on June 2 when he ended up hooking into a state-record fish.
He was using a Slug-Go lure on a 3-way rig when he got a strike. By the way the fish fought, Liebel knew it wasn’t a walleye, trout, salmon, or catfish. The deep-diving fish made Liebel believe it was likely a carp.
He fought the fish for a few minutes, finally brought it to his boat, and to his surprise and delight, realized he had caught a massive lake whitefish. The angler had caught many whitefish over the years, and this was the largest he’d ever seen.
The tailrace waters regularly give up 6- and even some 8-pound lake whitefish. But this fish was larger.
Liebel soon learned that the North Dakota record whitefish was an 8-pound, 11-ouncer caught in 1984. He followed state guidelines to have his fish officially weighed on certified scales, then submitted the proper record paperwork for his whitefish.
His 9-pound, 2-ounce, 25-inch long catch has now been accepted as the new North Dakota state record. It’s the first North Dakota record fish caught this year.
Lake whitefish are native to the Great Lakes region and Canada, but they were introduced to the Missouri River system as a potential prey base for native predatory fish like walleyes and pike. However, Whitefish are a worthy game fish in their own right and a fine addition to the plate, too.
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The International Game Fish Association world record whitefish, weighing 14 pounds, 6 ounces, was caught in May 1984 in Ontario, Canada.
Liebel will have a replica mount made of his record whitefish. He says he fishes almost daily when weather conditions allow for it. So who knows, maybe he’ll catch another record fish someday.
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