ASHWAUBENON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – It bills itself as a one-stop destination for those who love the outdoors.
The pandemic canceled the event last year, but the 2022 Wisconsin State Hunting and Fishing Expo has returned and is bigger than before.
For the past 37 years, Lee Haasch has chartered Lake Michigan fishing trips out of Algoma.
“For salmon and trout, steelhead, lake trout, brown trout, coho salmon, king salmon,” said Lee Haasch, Haasch Guide Service.
Haasch says he’s coming off his busiest season ever. He says pandemic protocols pushed many people toward outdoor activities, and he says that interest continued this year.
“We’re picking up a lot of people that want to do half-day charters with their family, or with some couples, for something fun to do. Also we get some business people that maybe are entertaining clients, or some of their workers.”
The 2022 Wisconsin State Hunting and Fishing Expo kicked off at the Resch Expo Friday with more than 150 exhibitors.
Drake Dawson drove from Missouri to set up his booth. Safari Unlimited books hunting and fishing trips around the world, but one of his most popular outings involves something prehistoric.
“Probably one of the main things we do is alligator hunts in south Louisiana. We’re one of the largest operators there, but I’m sold out through ’24.”
Dawson says COVID-19 allowed outdoor-related platforms to thrive online.
“It really opened up the hunting world to a lot of folks that sometimes couldn’t attend these shows, or things like that. So it was actually really good for our business. The international trips suffered a little bit, but I know domestic hunts really took off.”
Lee Haasch agrees. He says Algoma is becoming a charter fishing destination.
“We want our guests to come and experience the fishing and leave as friends.”
The expo continues Saturday and wraps up on Sunday.
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