When the Minnesota fishing season officially opens May 14, lifelong angler Carol Altepeter is planning to wet a line with her husband and perhaps even with her daughter, son-in-law and two granddaughters.
This is noteworthy because Altepeter hasn't fished an opener for a very long time — though few people have been more intimately involved in events surrounding the state's much-anticipated first-fishing day, when roughly 500,000 Minnesotans take to the water.
Altepeter, 64, of Brainerd, retired March 1 from Explore Minnesota, the state's tourism office. For the past 21 years, she coordinated the Minnesota Governor's Fishing Opener, a tradition begun in 1948 as a way to spotlight fishing in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, and boost tourism.
During those many openers, she never fished once.
"I would have loved to, but there just wasn't any time," Altepeter said. "We were too busy trying to make sure everything went off without out a hitch."
This year's governor's opener will take place on the Mississippi River in the St. Cloud area. The 70th annual event, the last Altepeter helped plan, will be hosted collaboratively by St. Cloud, Sauk Rapids and Sartell.
Altepeter said it hasn't fully sunk in yet that she's retired, let alone that she won't be attending the 2017 governor's opener in an official capacity.
"It's like going 150 miles an hour and crashing into a brick wall," she said of retirement. "I'm not quite used to it yet."
Altepeter grew up in California, where her father taught her to fish. At age 10, she moved to Minnesota and eventually married a "guy who loved to fish." In time, they moved to Baudette, where her husband worked as a fishing guide.
In 1989, Altepeter took a job as executive director of the Lake of the Woods Tourism Bureau, before signing on with Explore Minnesota in 1994. Two years later, she became coordinator for the governor's opener.
During her tenure, Altepeter worked with four governors — Arne Carlson, Jesse Ventura, Tim Pawlenty and Mark Dayton — and traveled hundreds of miles visiting potential host cities and the tourism and business officials of each who vied for the opportunity to host the three-day event.
She is awestruck by how large the opener has become.
"We used to mail a postcard invitation to media members," she said. "Now it's a large colorful packet of information about the host community."
Each year, she said, 150 to 175 media members attend the governor's opener. She credits Carlson with expanding the event to include more than just fishing.
"He had a vision that it could be bigger and highlight the community as a whole," she said. "He was right."
Mike Kurre is the mentoring program coordinator for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and is that agency's liaison to the Governor's Fishing Opener. He's worked closely with Altepeter over the years.
"I have a great deal of admiration for Carol — she's a wonderful person and a genuine leader," he said. "This event takes a great deal of preparation and planning, and Carol knows how to make the trains run on time. With her, nothing's left undone."
Kurre said he's watched Altepeter play cheerleader, psychologist and taskmaster.
"Being coordinator is very demanding — you have to juggle a lot of balls and personalities," he said. "I know I speak for a lot of people when I say I'm going to miss her."
As manager of the governor's opener, Altepeter worried constantly about Minnesota's mercurial May weather and how it might affect the event.
"I learned I couldn't control the weather, but I could prepare for every scenario," she said. "Even my contingency plans had contingency plans. I think we experienced every type of weather possible on the opener: rain, sleet, snow, cold, high winds, sunny days, you name it.
"One year, in 1997, on Otter Tail Lake, it was so nice we got sunburned having shore lunch."
Another year, in International Falls . . . not so much. Friday's community picnic, traditionally an outdoor event, had to be moved into a local hockey arena.
"It just poured rain that day, and I'll never forget it," she said. "We had to move fast and change plans."
A major benefit of the governor's opener, Altepeter said, is that it helps spotlight Minnesota's diverse fishing communities.
"The event generates a lot of publicity and that's a big deal for any community seeking tourism, particularly our small towns," she said. "The governor's opener is about the people and places that make Minnesota a great place to live and, of course, fish."
Biggest takeaway from her 21 years managing the opener?
"If I learned anything," she said, "it's that Minnesotans will fish the opener in any weather."
Tori J. McCormick is a freelance writer from Prior Lake. Reach him at torimccormick33@gmail.com.
