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Alan Burton of Woodhull, New York holds the only tagged trout he caught during the 2018 Upper Pine Creek Trout Tournament, but that was all he needed to win the $1,000 cash prize.

Successful anglers who catch tagged fish during the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon Snowmobile Club’s 31st Annual Upper Pine Creek Trout Tournament can win up to $14,000 in cash, merchandise and gift cards with each prize valued at $50 or more. The top prize is $1,000 in cash. There are also four $500 cash prizes.

Youngsters 12 and under can participate in the free Start a Kid Fishing Program, whether they register to fish in the tournament or not. With help from Smitty’s Sports in Gaines, the Tackle Shack in Wellsboro and club members, young anglers who are on-site will receive fishing rod combos and various other merchandise.

For the first time in its history, the tournament was canceled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Changes made in 2021 to ensure anglers’ safety are being continued in 2022. They include registering and checking in at the large registration tent that will be set up outdoors rather than indoors in the clubhouse as was done in the past. Ping Pong ball prize drawings will be outdoors in the tent rather than indoors and, as always, removal of tags from the fish will be outdoors at the bottom of the clubhouse steps.

The tournament will be on Saturday, May 14 from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, May 15 from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. along a 13-mile stretch of Pine Creek between the Ansonia Bridge on Colton Road in Shippen Township and the Mill Street Bridge in Galeton Borough. For the tournament, all of the trout will be tagged and float stocked in that section of Pine Creek.

The entry fee for adults is $20 now through Sunday, May 1 and $25 beginning Monday, May 2. The entry fee for youth under 16 is $15 now until the tournament.

Visit www.pagrandcanyonsnowmobileclub.com any time to download a registration form or pick one up at area businesses.

Between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 2, the opening day of the 2022 statewide trout season, 30 people registered in person and picked up bags, badges and maps at the registration tent in front of the snowmobile clubhouse at 4814 Route 6, 12 miles west of Wellsboro.

The tent will also be open for in-person registration on Friday, May 13, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. as well as for registration and check-in during tournament hours on Saturday and Sunday, May 14 and 15.

All fish must be legally caught. Those fishing before or after the stated times on May 14 or 15 will be disqualified. No fish will be accepted at the registration/check-in tent in front of the snowmobile clubhouse one hour after the cut-off time.

Those competing in the tournament must have a valid Pennsylvania fishing license, must not trespass on private property or litter and must adhere to CDC and Pennsylvania COVID-19 guidelines and requirements.

What an angler wins is based on the luck of the draw due to a lottery-type system implemented in 2015. The angler has to bring his or her tagged fish in “live condition” to the check-in tent. There, the angler will randomly draw a numbered Ping-Pong ball for each tagged fish he or she catches. The number on the ball is then matched to the corresponding number on the big prize board on the club’s front porch to determine what the prize is. That gives everyone a chance to win the $1,000 cash prize rather than the angler who happens to catch the “right fish” as was done in 2014 and prior years.

Funding for the tournament comes from donations made by local and out-of-the-area businesses and individuals. These donations include cash, merchandise, gift certificates and promotional items.

Money raised through the tournament is used to help cover the club’s operating costs as well as monetary donations to food banks at Wellsboro, Galeton and Osceola and other local organizations, and, in partnership with Seneca Resources, to award $1,000 college scholarships to three local high school graduating seniors.

For information, call (717) 881-9358 or the club at (570) 724-2888 or visit the club’s website at www.pagrandcanyonsnowmobileclub.com or its Facebook page.

Diane Eaton
dianetn@ptd.net
(570) 724-3800