Spring Mack Days: Second week brings in 8,773 lake trout

Flathead Lake anglers have just completed the second week of the 2023 Spring Mack Days. The fishing event sponsored by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and sanctioned by Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks will conclude on Saturday, May 13. There are seven weekends left and entries continue to be taken until the last day of the event.

A total of 8,773 lake trout entries have been turned in so far. The Monday-Thursday total is 1,463 and the Friday-Sunday total is at 7,310. The 2019 Spring Event holds the record of most lake trout entries with 40,362 at the conclusion of the event. The second weekend and the weekday total for 2019 was at 8,032.

Kolton Turner of Kalispell is leading the Top Ten anglers with a total of 545; Jason Mahlen of Kalispell is second with 400; Robert Turner of Kalispell is third with 379; Jerry Benson of Plains is fourth with 345; and Mike Benson Lonepine is fifth with 307.

The $10,000 tagged lake trout is still in the murky depths of the lake. There are also three $5,000-tagged trout, six with $1,000 tags, and over 9,000 with values from $100-$500. Bryan Long of Kalispell came in with a $100 tagged fish over the second weekend.