Gage Maser knows the tug of a big fish, so he immediately called for help when he felt a heavy pull on his line. Losing a single hefty trout can make the difference between a top 20 finish and finishing in the money at the Meeteetse Ice Fishing Derby.

Answering the call was coworker and the main competition in the derby, Sam Korhel. Maser and Korhel teamed up for the win last year, but were competing against each other in the tournament last weekend after Maser formed a new team of coworkers from Wyo-Ben in Worland.

Maser had a slow day on Upper Sunshine the first day of the tournament. Despite catching three fish, none of his fish made the final stringer for the judges table. He was feeling a little sheepish heading into day two on Lower Sunshine. But that only lasted a short time on Lower Sunshine Reservoir.

After catching a nice 18-inch trout, Maser got a big bite and instantly called for help. He wasn't about to take any risks with a pole bender.

"It's always better just to have an extra hand there," Maser said.

Korhel answered the call. After about five minutes fighting to get the giant lake trout to the hole in the ice he had a small equipment issue with a swivel. He didn't panic, but the only way he could fix the issue was to head out of his fishing shelter with his pole in hand and count on Korhel to grab the fish.

"He got to see the fish before I did," Maser said. "Sam looks out at me and yells, 'It's a monster!'"

Adrenaline was pumping through his veins as they grabbed a tape measure. The lake trout measured 31 and 7/8-inches. At that point Maser knew his team would probably be in the running for a cash prize. Typically one big fish can propel a team into first place.

Not long after securing the trophy, Korhel hooked a lunker. His trout measured just shy of 31 inches.

On a day that saw a lot of frustrated anglers, Maser noticed he was getting another bite on the way back to his shanty after helping Korhel. He ended up pulling another whopper out of the water — with the help of teammate Carnell Deere — measuring 27-inches. But he wasn't done.

Not long after, Maser, who is from Thermopolis, had to radio co-worker and teammate Trevor Birdsley to help him land another giant. This time it was a 30 incher. Maser had single-handedly pulled in a stringer of three fish measuring in at just over 88 inches; nearly a 30-inch average.

They had picked the right spot on the mountain reservoir. The team was in the middle of the pack after day one of the derby, but Maser's stringer gave them the win on Sunday, with the three teammates splitting $3,550 with a total length of 133.125-inches of trout — a full foot more than the second place team of Korhel, Dave Diede and Justin Kiser Korhel.

It turns out Korhel's help in landing Maser's first trout propelled the team into first place. Maser said the teams are competitive, but the tournament is all about fun.

"I'd say we're competitive still, but, you know, we all go fishing together, and we all help each other," Maser said. "It's just kind of how we are. We're just a bunch of guys that like to go fishing and, you know, try to catch big fish."

Because Maser was on Korhel's winning team last year, he has now won the tournament two years in a row. However, Korhel may have had the last laugh after having the top three winning teams in the Calcutta, pulling in an additional $817 to add to his cut of the $2,500 second place payout.

After the tournament Maser thanked his teammates, who had picked him up on day one, his sponsor Stars and Pipes and the derby director and volunteers.

"Thank you to Discover Meeteetse for another awesome derby," he said.

The big fish story

Proof of that came from first-timer Heidi Freeman of Lander, who had set up her gear within yelling distance of Maser. Freeman was invited to join Adrian Padilla's team when another teammate canceled — her first time competing.

Her tip-up sprung and she ran to the pole, thinking she had a 2-footer on the line. She was wrong.

"It just took the bait and ran with it, taking the whole spool of line," she said. "It took forever to pull it in."

As the fish came in view, Freeman was worried the mighty lake trout's head was too big to fit through her machine-augered hole. However, Padilla has been fishing the tournament in Meeteetse for the last 17 years and encouraged her to take it nice and easy landing the lunker.

As Padilla saw the fish appear he said "Oh my god, oh my god," before the giant was safe on the ice. The beast measured 36.5 inches, eventually winning the big fish competition and propelling his team, including Jose Guzman, into a third place finish.

Freeman was so excited, she immediately took the fish to officials for a measurement and stopping to show off her fish to everyone she saw along the way. A nice catch for someone who thought the second day of the tournament would be a bust.

"We pre-fished Lower Sunshine on Friday and got skunked," she said.

The story of the tagged fish

Every year Wyoming Game and Fish Department fisheries biologist Jason Burckhardt tags three trout in each reservoir "to increase the chances a tagged fish is caught," he said. This year a tagged fish was worth $5,100 (shared if more than one tagged fish is caught).

Catching a tagged fish out of the tens and tens of thousands of trout in the two reservoirs on derby day is like "throwing a dart while blindfolded and hitting the bullseye," he said.

Wyatt Turgeon of Ten Sleep couldn't believe his eyes when he caught a tagged Yellowstone cutthroat trout from Upper Sunshine on day one of the competition. His father and teammate Dan Turgeon thought it would be funny to razz his son as they waited to check it in.

"It's probably last year's fish," his father joked.

Wyatt didn't listen; the two joke around like that all the time. He was one of the first to check in Saturday, excited to present his fish to officials and pointing out the tag.

"We were all very excited for him," said Discover Meeteetse Director Melissa Len Hubacher.

But then a game warden told them the fish was actually tagged for the contest last year. This year's tags were red and the 2024 tags were pink.

Wyatt was still hurting on Sunday. He had lost his sense of humor over the ordeal.

"I was hoping to at least make back the entry fee," he said.

Traditionally Upper Sunshine gives anglers an easier chance of harvesting fish of the two reservoirs, but recent developments saw slower action than usual Saturday.

Upper Sunshine Reservoir has been stocked with Yellowstone cutthroat trout and fish sizes are pretty consistent with most between the 12-inch and 16-inch size. However, one issue the upper reservoir has seen is a problem with sucker fish, which compete with the trout for resources, Burckhardt said. He has seen a reduction in the condition of the trout due to the issue.

"[Trout] growth rate has slowed and plumpness has gone down," he said.

Burckhardt, who has managed the fisheries at both reservoirs for years, said they try to balance the harvest with the stocking rate to improve fish health and have changed stocking rates to allow trout to grow larger.

A new director

Hubacher was recently installed as the new director and a new board of directors was installed three weeks ago. The derby is the largest fundraising event for the tiny town made famous by its wild west history and some of the finest natural resources in the country. Despite the late start, several contestants mentioned how smooth the tournament was run by the Texas and Montana transplant.

"It's fun. The people that came and volunteered, my board, and all the members of Discover Meeteetse stepped up above and beyond or this wouldn't be possible," she said. "They just jumped right in and here we are."

The organization added a sucker fish competition worth more than $500 for the adults and every child (12 and under) participating received a door prize at the final ceremony. More than 10% of the anglers in the contest were in the "Small Fry" division.

Eleven-year-old Lincoln Shepperson fished his first derby in Meeteetse this year; brought to the event by his grandfather and derby regular Clint Fettig. Neither of the fishermen were catching fish, but it didn't seem to bother the duo. Up until the last moments of the tournament, both kept their eyes on their poles and hoped for a fish to enter. Fettig said it's more about the healing quality of the outdoors and spending time with his grandson than catching a trophy fish.

"It beats playing with a cellphone," he said. "The outdoors is good for everybody."

Delaine Diede won the Small Fry division, with Karter Kiser in second place and Ethan Morency in third.

The derby has a 125-team limit and was sold out a couple weeks before the event, Hubacher said.

"This is good family fun for everyone. And what better way to spend time with your kids, God and in this beautiful country," she said.

Hubacher said she was looking forward to a day off after putting in "100 hours" during tournament week. She also advised future competitors keep an open eye out next year for the open registration period.

"It sells out fast," she said.