2026 KFNW Tour Event 5

Sept 12 | Lake Pend Oreille, ID

2026 Tour Event 4 - Banks lake - Podium Winners — Brandon Henning (3rd Place), Jesse Brummett (1st Place), Scott Samson (Big Bass) , Will Raymond (2nd Place)

Tucked into the northern Idaho Panhandle near Sandpoint, Lake Pend Oreille sits in a valley shaped by repeated advances of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet, with the surrounding Selkirk, Cabinet, and Coeur d’Alene mountain ranges rising as high as 6,000 feet above the shoreline.

The lake occupies a trench scoured by Pleistocene glaciers roughly 12,000 to 17,000 years ago, then further carved and back-filled by the catastrophic Ice Age floods that repeatedly burst through a Purcell Lobe ice dam at the north end. Those floods stripped the basin down before glacial outwash and flood sediment partially refilled it, leaving the deep trench anglers fish today. Downstream on the Pend Oreille River sits Albeni Falls Dam, completed in 1955 and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which now controls lake elevation.

Lake Pend Oreille is Idaho’s largest and deepest lake, stretching roughly 43 miles north to south and reaching a maximum depth in excess of 1,150 feet — the fifth-deepest lake in the country. Average depth runs well over 400 feet, meaning most of the lake’s interior is effectively unfishable open water; the bass-relevant water is concentrated along the margins.

For competitors, that means the fishable water is almost entirely a shoreline game: riprap banks, rocky points, boulder-strewn drop-offs, and submerged ledges hold smallmouth, while the weedy coves, sheltered bays, and river-delta backwaters hold largemouth. Docks and piers around Sandpoint, Farragut State Park, and Hope add additional isolated cover in an otherwise steep, deep-breaking lake.

The fishery includes largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, black crappie, yellow perch, bluegill, pumpkinseed sunfish, walleye, northern pike, kokanee salmon, and multiple trout species including the lake’s famous Gerrard-strain Kamloops rainbow trout.

Our boundaries for Lake Pend Oreille cover 50,000 acres with approximately 110 miles of shoreline.

Qualifier for the KFNW Kayak Bass Classic

Top 10% of the field qualifies for the KFNW Kayak Bass Classic on October 3-4 on the Columbia River (Lake Bonneville).

This is our first event ever on Lake Pend Oreille

Tournament Schedule

All times are Pacific Daylight Time (PDT)

Off-Limits Period

Saturday, August 22, 2026 at 12:00 AM through Friday, September 4, 2026 at 11:59 PM

Registration Deadline

Friday, September 4, 2026 at 11:59 PM
Late registration is available on a limited basis, and is first-come, first-served. There is a $10 service fee for late registration.

Official Practice Period

Saturday, September 5, 2026 through Friday, September 11, 2026
5:30 AM – Practice Launch / Lines In
1:30 PM – Practice Lines Out / Off the Water

Friday – September 11, 2026

6:00 PM – Pre-Event Briefing | TBA
10:00 PM – Identifier Code Released

Saturday – September 12, 2026

4:00 AM to 4:30 AM – Virtual Check-In and Selfie
- Anglers are required to check-in on TourneyX (cell service permitting) and take a selfie at their launch, within this window. Failure to display a selfie when requested by tournament officials at the Awards may result in disqualification.
5:25 AM – Launch (Designated Launches) | Human-Powered
5:30 AM – Launch (Designated Launches) | Electric Motors
6:00 AM – Lines In
6:19 AM – Sunrise
2:00:00 PM – Lines Out
3:00 PM – Upload Deadline/Off the Water
- Cell Service on Water: Good / Spotty
- Cellular service may not be available on the water. It is the competitor’s responsibility to find service and upload their fish before the Upload Deadline.
4:00:00 PM – Awards Ceremony and Gear Drawing | TBA
Competitors MUST be present at Awards ceremony location by this time. Competitors who are not present by this time will be disqualified.

Idaho Regulations and Links

An Idaho fishing license is required (temporary or annual) – Visit IDFG
Watercraft registration is required for motorized watercraft (residents only) – Visit Idaho Parks & Rec
Watercraft (residents and non-residents) need an Invasive Species Sticker – Visit Idaho Parks & Rec or a Participating Vendor
To be exempt, watercraft need to meet ALL of the following criteria:

Pre-Event Briefing

Pre-Event Briefing Location

Great Northern Park
601 N Lincoln Ave, Sandpoint, ID 83864
https://maps.app.goo.gl/3jZuG8Lri31r8haBA

Pre-Event Briefing Details

Before the Pre-Event Briefing, a video will be published to go over specific details for this Tour Event. Certain rules may be discussed, but we will not review all the rules. It is the competitor’s responsibility to read and know all rules as published in the Rules Standard.
A signed hard copy of the Liability Release is required by all competitors for each Event. You can download the Liability Release in advance and bring the completed form (download below).
Electric Motor Inspection form is required for any competitor with a DIY or non-standard motor setup. If you have a non-standard setup, contact the Tournament Director to see if an inspection is necessary.
Certified bump board is required and board check will be performed. Boards should be clean and dry.
Competitors will have the opportunity to ask any questions before the meeting is adjourned.
Attendance at the Pre-Event Briefing is mandatory. If you can’t attend the meeting due to work or an unavoidable obligation, another angler can bring your Liability Release and bump board on your behalf. This solely the responsibility of the two competitors and no exceptions will be given.

Location Details

Designated Launch Locations

Bonner Park West (improved)
Clark Fork Drift Yard Boat Ramp (improved)
Garfield Bay Public Boat Launch (improved)
Hope Basin Boat Launch (improved)
Johnson Creek Access (improved)
Kayak Launch for Pack River Delta (Semi-Improved)
Laclede Ferry Rd Launch (improved)
Lakeview Park Boat Ramp (improved)
Morton Slough Boat Launch (improved)
Priest River Recreation Area Boat Ramp (improved)
Pringle Park Boat Ramp (improved)
Riley Creek Boat Ramp (improved)
Sam Owen Boat Launch (improved)
Sandpoint City Beach Park Boat Ramp (improved)
Springy Point Campground (improved)
Trestle Creek Boat Ramp (improved)
No other launches are allowed

Eligible Water Boundaries

Main body of water
Connected creeks, rivers, sloughs and tributaries accessible via kayak from the main body of water are in-bounds (conditions permitting for safety and accessibility) except as shown on the Location Details map
Disconnected sloughs and ponds are out-of-bounds
Portaging is not permitted
Only public waters are allowed

Awards Location

TBA

Safety Notes

An overhead 360° light is required in low light conditions. A high-visibility flag, vest-type PFD, and sound signaling device (whistle) are required on the water at all times. Failure to utilize any of this safety equipment may result in disqualification.