Fearing single-digit temperatures could combine with fierce winds to limit angler turnout last Saturday on Gull Lake, organizers of the 29th Brainerd Jaycees $150,000 Ice Fishing Extravaganza were pleasantly surprised when, during the noon to 3 p.m. tournament, the gales of January never materialized — but nearly 10,000 prize-seekers did.
Among them was Gary Creger of Forest Lake, whose patience was rewarded 2 hours, 20 minutes into the contest when a 5.2-pound northern pike gobbled the sucker minnow he dangled near the lake bottom. Successfully winched to the surface and weighed and released alive at the Fishing Extravaganza's registration tent, the northern earned Creger a new pickup truck.
Prizes were awarded for the 150 largest fish. Second place earned Darrell Smith of Delano, catching a 2.92-pound walleye, a new ATV, and similar prizes went to anglers placing 50th, 75th and 150th. The 100th largest fish, meanwhile, took home a new ice fishing wheel house.
Dennis Anderson
![Leroy Chiovitte holds the walleye he caught on May 13, 1979, on Lake Saganaga.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/ZXUCHBNUYJEEDKTDBVQH74PRQE.jpg?h=91&w=145&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Anderson: Chiovitte's state record walleye shouldn't be thrown back
![Justin Wathke holds a walleye caught with the help of a forward-facing sonar unit.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/NBP7FZ4X2JHWJFXPT36HLMXQVY.jpg?h=91&w=145&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Anderson: Minnesota's muskies are no match for sonar gadget
![Grace Zeller, a Department of Natural Resources helicopter pilot shown on an unrelated flight, helped extract two injured paddlers in the Curtain Fall](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/XA7XD2DUKVFFHJFYACD6P2UQFA.jpg?h=91&w=145&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Anderson: Anatomy of a nighttime helicopter rescue in Boundary Waters
![Autumn hunting seasons are months away, but summertime training of retrievers and other breeds benefits both canines and their human companions.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/5QSBQ6IBHJBEDPFLVUTWWQLKZQ.jpg?h=91&w=145&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Anderson: With summer training, know a dog's tail is meant to wag
![Among ground nesting birds in Minnesota, the pheasant has the largest fan base, thanks to the bird's more than 100-year history in the state.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/ZNCLDDHGBBDF7DADXU2DJZOP24.jpg?h=91&w=145&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)