The Paddlefish
How would you describe this fish? Imagine a fish weighing over one hundred pounds with smooth skin, varying in color from blueish grey to black carrying a large paddle-shaped bill with small beady eyes and a large, tapered gill covered with spots. This ancient fish resides in North Dakota primarily in the northwest Missouri and Yellowstone River systems. That being said, North Dakota has a healthy population of paddlefish that allows for a harvest season by snagging these fish every May.
To snag for paddlefish, your standard fishing rod will not work that well. The ideal fishing rod is large and sturdy, usually a saltwater rod, with a large reel and a lot of line. The front end of the line holds a large treble hook with a weight of 3 to 5 ounces. To snag these fish you cast the hook and weight as far as you can into the river channel, then use the rod to rip/pull the hook through the water. This method is more luck than skill in catching a fish. I have personally snagged for them and find it to be fun yet very tiresome.
As a Game Warden in the Williston area, I am at the heart of the paddlefish snagging season. Starting May first every year other game wardens and I saturate the area to enforce state laws. These days are typically long and terribly busy.
Having worked paddlefish season for about eight seasons now, I can tell you that no two years are the same. There are fisherman from all levels, from the diehards casting for hours, never stopping to drink water, to the ‘moral support’ snaggers that ensure the supply of adult beverages never stops flowing.
Every warden’s Paddlefish season had story…and here are a few.
2012: A year before I started at the peak of the boom, a warden was driving to the wildlife management area shooting range, south of Williston. Upon arriving he found out that a septic truck had illegally dumped their entire contents down the dirt road covering his patrol truck in the most foul-smelling sludge you can imagine. He spent hours at the district office power washing his truck.
2014: North Dakota State Patrol and Williams County Sheriff requested Warden Sperling and me to assist in a pursuit that started in a Williston gas station of a stolen vehicle driving off without paying for gas. The pursuit went west to Montana and turned around, heading back into North Dakota. Warden Sperling and I were at the Sundheim Bridge over the Yellowstone River when we engaged in the pursuit. We pursued this stolen vehicle south into the badlands until the offender decided to drive off trail out into the badlands through fences and steep gullies where only ATV riders could conquer. We never caught the person, but on a funny note a Richland County (Montana) Sheriffs unit was turning around on a ridgetop and was immobilized. A large rock had high-centered their Tahoe. Our radios were on different frequencies so they couldn’t call for assistance; however, they got to watch the rest of the pursuit from a distance. I believe they sat there for some time until a tow truck arrived.
2015: Warden Updike and I were walking down a rutted up mudhole of a road by Trenton Lake to check fisherman when Warden Updike found a license plate laying on the ground near a mudhole. He instantly recognized the owner as a fellow game warden who was working the are the previous week. He stated that the road was pretty rough to drive down…apparently!
2016: Warden Skuza and Warden Sperling were driving to an area known as the Pumphouse along the Missouri River. The Pumphouse is a very popular snagging spot. On their drive they watched a motorcycle accident unfold right in front of them resulting in one person being life-flighted out for possible head injuries and the other with a large laceration on their head.
2016: A Warden found a “missing person” at the Highway 85/Missouri River boat ramp. This person, an adult female, seemingly did not care that they were reported missing.
2018: Warden Lucas and I cited and arrested an individual that was wanted on a felony theft warrant, from Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania drove all the way to Williston to pick up this individual and take him back. He must have stolen some valuable stuff because they wanted him back badly.
2019: A warden spent over an hour sneaking up on a potentially illegal bonfire party on a wildlife management area. He used his night vision goggles and crawled his way through the woods toward the fire...only to find out it was a flare off an oil pad on the other side of the river. No party there!
2022: Warden Sperling and I were checking snaggers along the Yellowstone River nearing the end of legal hours when one person still attempting to catch his fish for the season, challenged me to a leg wrestling match. He was not joking and would have stopped his fishing if I accepted his challenge.
Lastly, one more from 2022: A warden – whose name I will keep a secret to keep his dignity intact – was unfortunate enough to acquire a hitchhiker in the form of a large cactus that attached to his pants backside while walking back to his truck after issuing citations for snagging after legal hours. He never knew about the hitchhiker until he sat down in his patrol vehicle burying the spines deep into his skin. OUCH!
- Warden Keenan Snyder