Local fishing association preparing for Annual Togue Derby

Members of the Sebago Lake Anglers’ Association are getting ready for their Fall Fishing Classic, the Annual Togue Fishing Derby to be held on Sebago Lake next weekend.

This year's Annual Togue Derby will be held on Saturday,
Sept. 9 and Sunday, Sept. 10 on Sebago Lake and is hosted
by the Sebago Lake Anglers' Association.
COURTESY PHOT. 

The derby will be conducted on Saturday, Sept. 9 and Sunday, Sept. 10 from the Sebago Lake State Park Main Boat Launch. Fishing begins at 6 a.m. on both days with the official weigh-in station at the boat launch closing at 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 9 and at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 10.

An awards ceremony will commence shortly thereafter the closing on Sunday, Sept. 10.

The Annual Togue Fishing Derby is a community-based event focused on families and kids but experienced fishermen and guides with clients are welcomed too. Cash prizes will be paid to 10 places by weight, as well as a prize for biggest fish on Saturday, three prizes for any Togue submitted in the Togue lottery, and one prize for the smallest Togue, caught by hook and line.

All Inland Fisheries and Wildlife rules for Sebago Lake will apply to the Annual Togue Derby. Togue are lake trout and are the largest native freshwater fish in Maine with the state record being 39.2 pounds caught in Richardson Lake.

Last year the association honored a three-time winner as Travis Knight caught a big fish on Saturday and the fish held up to be the largest one caught in the event. Knight also entered several other Togue he caught into the derby pool. and was selected by a lottery for another prize, winning a total of $700 overall for the two-day derby.

Association officials emphasize that you do not have to fish both days of the event and you don’t have to be present to win, provided that your fish was legally entered within the established derby time limits. Prizes for those not present can be picked up at Naples Bait and Tackle, Route 35 in Naples for 30 days after the derby.

Fish that derby fishermen don’t want to take home can be donated after the weigh-in for a church fish fry or to a local food pantry. Receptacles will be available for donations as well as a fish-cleaning station.

Participants who are interested in registering for the Annual Togue Derby can do so by picking up a registration card at Naples Bait and Tackle, Route 35 in Naples; at the Hilltop Mini Mart, on Route 302 in Raymond; at Jordan’s Store, Route 114 in Sebago; or at Dag’s Bait and Tackle, on Minot Road in Auburn.

The cost to participate is $35 for adults and $15 for kids under 16 years old. All persons on board a boat fishing in the event must be registered.

Proceeds from the Annual Togue Derby are used to pay out the prize money and what is left is collected by the Sebago Lake Anglers’ Association to purchase Youth Lifetime Fishing Licenses for deserving Maine children.

For more details about the Annual Togue Derby, call Sebago Lake Anglers’ Association President Bob Chapin at 207-655-1028. <