Paddlefishing Adventures in Western North Dakota

By

Dan Ackerman

It’s the beginning of May, and if you’re like a lot of folks, you’re hoping the snow flakes are finally done falling, begging the frost to leave the ground, watching the creeks flow and trying to soak up the warm rays while wetting a line in the mighty Yellowstone River.  Your target, if you choose to accept, is the prehistoric paddlefish.  This fish is not like most of the fish we wish to tango with.  It is much larger in length and girth, it has a huge paddle which is used for sensory perception, much like the lateral line in the many of the other species we fish for, has a powerful tail that will knock you on your rear before you knew what hit you, requires no bait to catch, and will leave you worn out, tired, and sore after a few hours of casting. 
I wish I had known the woes of paddlefishing (if you wish to call it that) well beforehand, as I was truly unaware.   The sport should be called This Fish Will Hurt You, rather than paddlefishing (I will indulge you in the name change shortly).  It requires you to have a large, rather gaudy fishing pole in lengths up to 10 feet long, a large 5 oz or larger weight of some kind, be it a spark plug, a large bolt or wheel weights, a treble hook the size of your fist, enough line in the 40 pound class to launch the ensemble halfway across the river, and of course, the best bait in the world is a twelve pack of your favorite adult beverage.
So the goal of this sport is to consume numerous adult beverages of your choosing, tie on your large treble hook, the weight, and begin zinging the artwork across the river and ripping the collection back to you, hopping to lay into a large whopper club status paddlefish, which in North Dakota is 70 pounds.  After a couple casts your body is already beginning to feel the pain.  Your shoulders are tight, the forearms and biceps are bulging, the sweat is pouring from your forehead, and your side where you have placed the butt of the rod while ripping your weight and hook back to shore, is rubbing raw, causing slight bleeding.  The cure for all of this agony is the teasing, taunting, and laughing with a group of 14 other buddies all in the same state you’re in.  The best part of the adventure is socializing with groups of friends you only get to see once a year on this very occasion and sharing a few cold beverages to ease the pain.  All of this, in hopes of landing the impressive plankton feeder, the paddlefish. 
Once someone finally lays into a fish, the game begins.  The snagger with the fish, clamors “fish on!”  The crowd gets their lines out of the way if they’re so kind, then gathers downstream of you, throws jeers and heckles you while you battle the fish of your body size, and they will all try to help you coax the behemoth to shore!  Finally, your fish shows itself by leaping into the air, splashing violently, trying to rid itself of the embedded hook.  If you’re lucky, the fish will not get into the current and peel off all of your line, or will not stick it’s bill in the bottom and lodge itself so you can’t pull em to shore.  And finally, you get your fish to shore, you have a couple buddies jump into the river, grab your fish, and fling it up on the bank for all around to marvel at its size.  What a magnificent creature.  My first paddlefish ever, showed its head this year after six hours of casting, 2 cases of beer, and 28 pounds of muscle flopping on the shoreline. 
To all who wish to join in the fun, the sweat, the aches and pains, below freezing temperatures, the fins and tails, good luck, enjoy yourselves and cherish the fight of a very cool looking fish who could knock you on your backside.  Get outdoors while you can and enjoy our great state of North Dakota.