A look back in time at the first-ever national muskie open

The arrival of the 40th anniversary of the Eagle River National Championship Musky Open prompted a look through the decades to find some of the highlights of the event that originated in 1986.

Since its beginnings, the tournament has been a partnership between the Eagle River Area Chamber of Commerce and the Musky Clubs Alliance of Wisconsin.

Looking back at the inaugural event, a news story printed in the Aug. 6, 1986, edition of the Vilas County News-Review says the Eagle River-Alliance Muskie Open Tournament drew 907 fishermen to the waters of 35 area lakes for its first year. Twenty-three muskies were boated that were above the tournament minimum size limit of 35 inches.

Jerry Stadler, who still lives here in Eagle River, was the top angler of the 1986 tournament, bringing in muskies measuring 38.5 inches and 36 inches.

Organizers highlighted that during the first-ever open, only one fish was kept — a 44-incher pulled in by Bill Twitchell on Muskellunge Lake, which was the biggest fish caught in the tournament. All other fish were measured and released.

The original event was headquartered at the historic Dome ice arena in Eagle River and chaired by local fishing legend George Langley. Tourism officials at the time estimated that tournament anglers spent at least $50,000 in the area during the three-day event on lodging, food, gas, equipment, souvenirs and other expenses.

Prizes totaled nearly $30,000 for participating anglers, which included a Ranger Fisherman bass boat with motor valued at $12,000.

Abbey Gatlin, executive director of the chamber, took a moment to thank the incredible group of individuals who have carried on this great northern tradition alongside the chamber.

“It’s such a neat piece of Eagle River history in this event,” she said. “It’s refreshing to see longtime partnerships like these combine to not only boost tourism to our area, but to also work toward conservation efforts and fishery improvements that keep people coming back year after year.”

The Musky Clubs Alliance of Wisconsin has been involved since the beginning. The alliance is composed of about 25 Wisconsin-based muskie clubs, including local chapters of Headwaters Muskies Inc. and Northwoods Muskies Inc.

One of the main purposes of the alliance is to provide an organizational framework in which the clubs can share information and work together to improve the muskie fishery. The annual muskie open in partnership with the Eagle River chamber is one of the alliance’s largest fundraisers of the year.