By Mark Schram, myfishingpartner.com
The 2016 Winnebago System Sturgeon Spearing season is set to begin this week, running from Feb 13 to Feb 28, 2016 or until harvest caps are met. This annual event, held in east central Wisconsin, draws sportsmen from around the world to partake in this unique experience to hunt a prehistoric beast.
The 2015 season was symbolized with a shortened season where many of the sturgeon harvested came in underweight from past years. The 2015 forage base was weak, leading to leaner fish at the scale.
Water clarity in 2015 was fairly clear (about 13 feet), allowing for harvest caps to be met prior to the scheduled end of the season. 2015 proved to be a highly successful, leading to a memorable year for many sportsmen
In 2015, The Upper Lakes (Poygan and Buttes des Mortes) reached caps in just 5 days, with Lake Winnebago capping out in 8 days. Total harvest was 2,158 sturgeon with the largest sturgeon harvested weighing in at 137 pounds.
As we lead into the 2016 season, a 4% increase has been seen in license sales vs. 2015 (13,674 licenses sold for the season) according to the Wisconsin DNR. The sport continues to grow at a rapid rate. In 2010, a total of 10,366 permits were issued, resulting in nearly a 25% increase in participation in just 6 years.
Harvest caps have been increased slightly in 2016.
Lake Winnebago’s ice sheet was slow to develop in 2016, and ice bridges were placed this week for trucks. The bridges, which allows passage over cracks, require a minimum of 12 inches of ice depth to be placed by the local fishing clubs by-laws. Typically bridges are placed in early January; however, the El Nino winter has resulted in a warmer than normal season. Most areas of the lake have 12-18” of ice with the east shore having the thicker average ice. Lake Poygan has a base of ice with an 18-20 inch average.
Water clarity is the key element when it comes to success rates. The 2016 water clarity outlook appears dim, with clarity in the 6-8 foot range currently.
What to expect in 2016: The sturgeon population is robust, and there is a potential record number of sportsmen in search of the mighty sturgeon this year. The forage base has improved from last year; however, is still below average. Water clarity is poor but could improve as the season progresses. Access onto the lake is readily available, but there are some minor safety concerns with thinner ice areas.
2016 Predictions: Lake Poygan, Lake Winneconne and Buttes Des Mortes will excel in 2016 with harvest caps expected to be triggered well before the official end of the season. On these lakes, water clarity is allowing spearers to see more of the water column in the shallower water, creating more opportunities. The forage base was heavily concentrated in Lake Pogan in 2015, and this is not the case in 2016. Myfishingpartner will predict a successful and shorten season, similar in length to 2015.
Lake Winnebago is a complete wild card. Based on the forage base more evenly spread between the main lake and upper lakes in 2016, it reasons that more sturgeon could be in the main lake in 2016. Water clarity is murky, which will greatly hinder harvest rates. “You can’t spear fish you can’t see.”
The majority of spearing activity occurs during the first weekend, and the long range weather forecast calls for near normal temperatures and no snow. This will push participation numbers up on opening weekend, and should push harvest numbers up on the first two days. Some sportsmen will stay home over concerns of ice safety.
Myfishingpartner predicts a longer season on Lake Winnebago, with a potential of an early cap out likely in the second week of the season. The potential for a full length season is higher than normal.
Record fish? We know that the Winnebago system holds multiple record fish, and many more over 200 pounds. 2016 will not produce a record in our estimation, based solely on the forage base weaknesses over the past two years. The fish are healthy, but not completely stuffed full of food reducing the overall average weight of the sturgeon harvested this year.
If you have never experienced the culture of sturgeon spearing, this is a must see. Spectators out number sportsmen, and the entire region is in festival mode. In many cases, it’s about the party and not the fish. Best viewing areas are at Wendt’s in Van Dyne, WI and the Stockbridge, WI Harbor bar. Typically from 11 am -1 pm have the highest registration times. Get out and experience this culture!
Myfishingpartner.com will have season long coverage of sturgeon spearing, and daily updates can be found on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/myfishingpartner/ My Fishing Partner can also be found on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest and Tsu.
