VIDEO: Thousands gather for Devils Lake ice fishing extravaganza

Brisk winds weren't enough to keep an estimated 4,500 to 5,000 anglers off the ice Saturday afternoon for the 34th annual Devils Lake Volunteer Fire Department Ice Fishing Tournament.

It's not like the wind never blows in North Dakota, after all.

The biggest ice fishing tournament of its kind in North Dakota, the event is the Fire Department's primary fundraiser. The 22,500 tickets available for the tournament sold out weeks ago, and this year's event featured more than $325,000 in prizes, most of them awarded during Saturday night's raffle in the Devils Lake Memorial Building.

Fishing took center stage Saturday afternoon, though, and the throngs who gathered to wet lines through more than 6,000 holes that a crew of 120 volunteers had drilled early that morning were having fun.

"It's a great time visiting with people," said Jim Moe, Devils Lake fire chief. "It's a family event, and it's well organized. We've heard a lot of people say we run a great event."

Like most big ice fishing events, the Devils Lake tournament is known for attracting some colorful characters, and this year's tourney was no exception.

Decked out in mirror sunglasses, Mike Anderson of Grand Forks was part of a 12-person crew who braved the elements for the tournament. This was his 26th year fishing the tournament, Anderson said.

"Don't ask me how many fish I've caught,," he said. "I've never caught a prize but I keep coming."

Catching fish didn't seem to be a priority, and Anderson and his buddies were grilling brats and having fun.

Despite the brisk conditions, fishing got off to a fast start Saturday afternoon and several fish were weighed within minutes of the tournament start.

Jim Thomas of Minot was among the first anglers to weigh in a fish, a walleye that might have stretched across a 5-gallon pail with a bit of help.

"I've been fishing this for 34 years, and this is the first one I've even caught," he said.

The biggest fish didn't necessarily land the biggest prizes, though. The second-biggest walleye, for example, would land a lucky angler a 2018 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited 4x4 SUV, compared with "only" $2,000 for the largest walleye.

The third-largest perch was good for a John Deere side-by-side utility vehicle, worth nearly $12,000, considerably more than the $2,000 first prize.

That's part of the fun, Moe said.

The Devils Lake fire chief says this will be his last year overseeing the tournament as the department turns the reins over to younger firefighters.

"We're going to let the younger group do the organizational part," Moe said. "We're still going to be very involved, but not as an official title anymore."

For complete results from the fishing tournament and Saturday night's raffle, go to dlvfdicefishingtourney.com.