By PETE KLEIN

Express News Staff

INDIAN LAKE — Don’t worry. Not every fish in Lake Adirondack was hooked when the Indian Lake/Blue Mountain Lake Fish & Game Association held its annual fishing contest on Saturday, Jan. 21.

It was a cold day with some very light snow but the single-digit temps were not hard to endure with there being only a very light breeze to contend with. And the ice was very safe with an average thickness of about 14 inches.

Upward of 174 contestants had registered as of noon, with fishing having started at 7 a.m. and the contest scheduled to conclude at 4 p.m. Total fish weighed 259 pounds; the largest pike caught was 8 pounds, 4 ounces, by Marie Brown; and the largest perch was 1 pound, caught by Marc Linaris.

More than $2,000 in cash prizes and $1,000 in equipment prizes were expected to be awarded by day’s end. For many the prizes were just a good excuse to do what they might have done anyway because as every one knows,  A day spent fishing is better than doing anything else.