34th Annual Eelpout Festival: February 14th -17th, 2013
February 1, 2013
For three days every February, Walker, MN has drawn crowds of more than 10,000 people for a festival that celebrates what may be the ugliest fish in the world, the eelpout. People gather on a frozen Leech Lake – the 3rd largest lake in Minnesota – in the dead of winter to participate in a Minnesota tradition of eating good food, playing some interesting games, and celebrating a really ugly fish.
Now what exactly do you do on a frozen lake for three days? Well for starters, you can bring out your ice house and fish, but don’t expect them to drill your holes. If, after a few hours of fishing, you haven’t caught a thing, you can grab some food on the lake: anything from eelpout nuggets to walleye cakes. The Eelpout Festival also offers entertainment and activities like eelpout curling, a polar pout plunge, rugby, and the eelpout derby. They have live music, dance parties, a fish fry, bull riding, and much, much more.
This year’s Eelpout festival will take place from February 14th through February 17th, 2013. To take part in all of the cold weather fun, all you have to do is purchase an Eelpout festival button for $10, which can be purchased online with only a $2.99 shipping fee, no matter how many buttons you order. Make sure to get your button before midnight on February 3rd, 2013. Buttons purchased after this date will be $15.
Come out to Walker, Minnesota on Leech Lake and join in on all the fun! Kiss an eelpout for good luck, and take in the sites. Until you experience it, you won’t get it.