Sturgeon spearing season is upon us on the Winnebago system. On Saturday, 2,400+ shanties were on Lake Winnebago. The travel on the lake has been moderately difficult, with large drifts common over the lakes from the recent snow fall. As traffic patterns emerged, these drifts were beaten down, and easier travel was common. Sunday’s rain did not help the ice situation, and it has yet to be seen what the effects of the rainfall will be. Access points were beaten down at many launches.
Water Clarity was restricted this weekend on Lake Winnebago for Sturgeon Spearing
Water Clarity is the number one story. The best water clarity we found was in the deeper regions of the lake. Clarity as deep as 9 feet were seen near Fisherman’s Road and Quinney, WI.
Other areas:
- In Fond du Lac, WI., water clarity was at less than two feet.
- We speared the area near Wendt’s in Van Dyne, WI. Water clarity, although variable throughout the day, was at 5 feet in 7 feet of water.
- Calumet County Park with 8 foot visibility.
- Stockbridge with 7 feet.
- Calumetville 3 feet
As for non sturgeon reports, they are limited.
Subway road/Blanck’s area (North Fond du Lac) – a solid pan fish bite has been seen here, in heavy stained water. Fluorescent colored jigs are working best.
Wendt’s (Van Dyne) – just to the south of the access point, in the old weed beds, has had an excellent bite working for bluegill and perch. Some of the perch have been nearing jumbo status. Stay south of all the shanties in the bay.
TJ’s (Cty RD Z and Hwy 45) – Perch , bluegills and crappies have been solid here. You’ll be mixed in with the sturgeon spearers. Again locate the weed beds for the best pan fish actions.
Merritt Street (Oshkosh) – There is a foot trail which leads off of Merritt Street. Extreme caution needs to be used in this area. Walleyes and white bass are been reported on jigging rapalas with no bait.
With Emily Deem at Fox 11 during the Women on Winnebago Event
East Shore, Near Gladwater Beach – Strong numbers of white bass have been in this area, and have been eager to take baits. On Sunday, this school moved, or shut down, and activity declined.
The rain water runoff will not help the water clarity issues the system now faces. In the short term, expect deteriorating conditions, with a chance of improvement by next weekend. The sturgeon will remain the focally point of Winnebago sportsmen for the next 10 days or so.
I had the pleasure to work with the Women on Winnebago spearing event, with tons of coverage from national media (Put on by the Fond du Lac Area Tourism) including the local TV stations, Midwest Outdoors TV, Indiana Outdoors TV, Dan Small Tv, Chicago Tribune, Ultimate Outdoor radio, Whitetails Unlimited Magazine, Outdoors Junkies TV, and others. Expect plenty off coverage to be found in the near future for the area.
One of my spearing partners was Sarah Greene Ahrens. Her back story is phenomenal, including the reality show “Top Shot”, Season Three. A former Swat officer with the Rockford Police department, and a military background, she definitely had some great stories to tell between media interviews. She was just one of the great personalities present this past weekend for spearing.
Stay on top, and send us a fishing report if you have one. [email protected] is the email. And remember, it’s only 30-45 days until open water in De Pere!
We cut a few videos this week, including how to spear a sturgeon, and a recap from around the lake on opening day. They can be found in the video section. We plan to upgrade the site this week, so we could encounter some brief interruptions, so please be patient with our construction. Have a great week.
