MORGANTOWN — Ken Neer recently became the fifth fisherman to complete the West Virginia Master Angler challenge and first from Monongalia County to do so.
The Master Angler Award, presented by the Division of Natural Resources, is a lifetime achievement award and the result of catching 22 different types of fish consisting of six different species.
Each group of fish or SLAM represents a different species that requires traveling to several waterways throughout the state in order to obtain specific fish included in that category.
“I’ve fished pretty much my whole life,” Neer said. “I started with trout fishing in 1979 and kept expanding the type of fishing I do.”
There are six different categories of fish to catch in the challenge and each category consists of three to five species of the specific fish. The categories include black bass, catfish, non-game, panfish, predator and trout.
This is the first time Neer has participated in the challenge and he anticipated finishing the challenge in one year but actually finished in less than five months. The program is designed to be completed over six years.
“Mother Nature was not very kind in the beginning, with snowstorms, ice jams, and very cold weather when I started the challenge in January,” Neer said.
Neer traveled to Elk River in Pocahontas County, Blackwater River in Tucker County, Cheat Lake in Monongalia County and the Monongahela River in Marion County. When he was at Cheat Lake, he caught a spotted bass and was informed by the DNR that they were not aware that spotted bass were in the lake.
“I was able to go places I normally don’t go, this challenge allowed me to fish for different kinds of fish I normally don’t go for,” Neer said.
The main goal of this challenge is to motivate people to try something new, it’s a learning experience for everyone, and it people to try new things.
“I learned a lot through this experience,” Neer said. “I learned different rigs, fished for different fish, and different baits to use.”
Neer was presented with the West Virginia Master Angler Award by Mark Scott of the DNR.
