Stephen Miklandric Makes History by Claiming Master Angler VI

By Molly Kirk/DWR

“We’d better order some Master Angler VI patches. Stephen Miklandric is going for it,” said Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) Angling Education Coordinator Alex McCrickard said one day last fall as he walked into the DWR office.

The newly minted Master Angler VI patch.

Miklandric was the first Virginia angler to achieve the Master Angler V title through the Online Virginia Angler Recognition Program (OVARP), which is awarded when an angler catches citation-size fish from 25 species on the trophy fish list. He did so in April 2019. And now, he’s the first angler to claim the Master Angler VI honors by catching trophy-size fish of all 30 species on the trophy fish list. Miklandric brought his final species onto the boat and into the record books on January 9 when he netted a 23 ¼”, 4 lb 3 oz saugeye on the Appomattox River.

Stephen Miklandric and the saugeye that helped him earn the first Master Angler VI title awarded.

“I pretty much knew that fish was there; it was just a question of making the trip and pursuing it,” Miklandric said. “After all the years of pursuing all these species, it was kind of a bittersweet moment. I reached my objective, and I was happy about that, but I also kind of thought, ‘What now?’ But I’ll never stop fishing. And really, my goal remains the same—to go out and fish and enjoy it and become one with nature. I still enjoy it just as much as I did when I was a little boy and caught my very first fish.”

Stephen Miklandric and the 102-lb, 10-oz blue catfish that he caught on the James River.

After Miklandric had collected his Master V patch in 2019, he slowed his fishing pace a bit, semi-retiring from his systems analyst career and moving with his wife to North Carolina. In the meantime, three other Virginia anglers added Master Angler V patches to their records, joining Miklandric in that honor. But Miklandric never hung up his rods—he was steadily checking off the last five species for his Virginia Master Angler VI status.

When the Master Angler VI level was created within the Online Virginia Angler Recognition Program (OVARP) in 2019, DWR added new species including fallfish, saugeye, and other sunfish (any sunfish other than a redear or bluegill) and split the crappie species into black and white. So, Miklandric had to go back to some old stomping grounds to re-catch some trophy fish. “I had caught citation-size fallfish before, but they were never on the citation menu,” he said. “So it was just having the time and resources to target each of those last five species on my list. Finally, I was able to concentrate on the saugeye and actually get it.”

Miklandric has been participating in Virginia’s trophy fish program for decades, recording 1,816 citation freshwater fish and getting five Creel Angler of the Year titles (2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2019) for catching the most trophy-size fish in a year.

According to McCrickard, the sauger that Miklandric added to his list in 2015 was the most impressive catch, since sauger are quite rare in Virginia waters. “He’s one of very few people to record a sauger into the trophy fish program. Citation sauger are the most difficult fish to find in Virginia, as they’re only present in far Southwest Virginia in the Powell and Clinch rivers, part of the upper Tennessee River basin,” said McCrickard.

Stephen Miklandric had the citation-size sauger he caught in 2015 mounted.

“I adore the trophy fish program. It’s been so special to me over the years,” Miklandric said. “But fishing is really about, at the bottom line, having some fun. You can live five lifetimes, and you’ll never know everything about fish. But if you fish long enough and get good enough, you can do some fun things. I just continued to fish ever since I was a young boy. It was always my refuge. I love all fish, whether they’re citations or not. All the awards and milestones have just been byproducts of continuing to fish and loving to do it. When all is said and done, what we’re left with are the memories—the many friends, failures, and victories. It’s just such a great sport.”