February 12, 2025 – Fond du Lac Co., WI – It was another slow day out on Lake Winnebago. Reports are coming in that the west side of the lake still has better water clarity than the east shores. Still, a total of 26 lake sturgeon were harvested on Lake Winnebago today with 2 juvenile females, 13 adult females and 11 males.
The higher numbers of fish registered at the Downtown Oshkosh and Neenah registration stations, registering 55 and 57 fish so far this season, respectively, continue to reflect better conditions on the west shores.
The Poygan registration station continues to be where most spearers are going on the Upriver Lakes, likely due to better ice access. This station has registered a whopping 119 fish in just four days. That is almost 60% of the fish harvested on the Upriver Lakes. Today, a total of 27 lake sturgeon were harvested on the Upriver lakes: 19 males, 7 adult females and 1 juvenile female. Overall, there have been 189 fish harvested from the Upriver Lakes: 27 juvenile females, 26 adult females and 137 males.
View the full details in today’s harvest report.
Jon Verhagen speared the largest fish of the day with a 160.6-pound, 81.2-inch, F2 female from Lake Winnebago. This incredible fish is likely anywhere between 70 and 100 years old. Even with their slow reproduction – not reaching sexual maturity until they are 20 or 25, and then only spawning once every 4 years or more – this fish could have migrated up the Wolf or Fox river systems to reproduce 15 times or more over the course of her lifetime.
Please note that due to poor water clarity, we will be closing the Pipe registration station again Wednesday. For those registering fish in that area, the Quinney registration station is the next closest station. Please make sure to adjust your plans accordingly.
Thank you to all who were out. Please continue to be safe, and congrats to all who were successful today.
February 11, 2025 – Fond du Lac Co., WI – Spearers were met with calm winds and sunshine for the third day of the spearing season. As usual, with the coming weekdays, harvest has dropped off as many spearers went back to work. Today, a total of 65 lake sturgeon were harvested throughout the entire Winnebago System. On Lake Winnebago, there were 36 lake sturgeon harvested: 6 juvenile females, 16 adult females and 14 males.
Harvest on the Upriver Lakes continues to come in at a steady but slow pace with 29 lake sturgeon harvested today (21 males, 2 adult females and 6 juvenile females). This brings the Upriver season total to 118 males, 19 adult females and 26 juvenile females, with 163 overall. After three days, we are just about halfway to the male harvest cap on the Upriver Lakes.
View the full details in today’s harvest report.
There are still a good number of large lake sturgeon being harvested. Another 2 lake sturgeon weighing more than 100 pounds were speared today, with David Carnot spearing the biggest fish of the day: a 149.5-pound, 76.7-inch, F2 female
and Mike Boettcher spearing a 138.4-pound, 79.7-inch, F2 female. This brings the total of lake sturgeon over 100 pounds to 18. The increase in chironomid (or red worm) densities on Lake Winnebago is likely helping to the keep these fish at healthy weights.
There were also multiple first-time successful spearers on the system today. Hunter Minor from Elko, Minnesota has come over to spear with his grandfather who is from the Stockbridge area and was able to successfully spear his first fish on Lake Winnebago with a 37.8-pound, 56.9-inch, M1 male. Twelve-year-old Warren Nelson was also able to successfully spear a 63.6-pound, 62.5-inch, M2 male from the Upriver Lakes today. We hope the fish story they have from today will be told through the generations.
Not only that, but there are also many spearers who continue to add to their spearing stories, including John Worm who at 88 years young is still taking to the ice to spear these incredible fish. Today he came home with a 93-pound, 69.1-inch fish.
Please note that due to poor water clarity, we will be closing the Pipe registration tomorrow. For those registering fish in that area, the Quinney registration station is the next closest station. Please make sure to adjust accordingly.
Thank you to all who were out. Please continue to be safe, and congrats to all who were successful today!
February 10, 2025 – Fond du Lac Co., Wi – Reports from spearers indicate Lake Winnebago and the Upriver Lakes are experiencing a shift in water clarity. Areas with clear water Saturday were murkier today, even with the sun shining through the ice.
Despite the less-than-ideal conditions, spearers overcame the adversity and were successful. Today, 121 lake sturgeon were speared throughout the system, including 25 juvenile females, 34 adult females and 62 males.
Lake Winnebago continues to prove there are a significant number of large fish in this system. After the large fish yesterday, another large individual came in today. Joseph Miller successfully speared a 161.9-pound, 81.9-inch female lake sturgeon.
The most surprising thing is this fish wasn’t even an F4 female full of eggs.
This fish was still about a year away from spawning and could have likely weighed an additional 40-50 pounds next year. Fish like this remarkable specimen are a testament to how healthy this ecosystem is to support a fish this size.
There were 3,340 shanties counted on Lake Winnebago this weekend. Most of the shanties were located off the west central portion of Lake Winnebago near the Oshkosh area. This observation is reflected in the number of fish registered at the Downtown Oshkosh and Neenah registration stations, with 19 each. These stations continue to register the highest number of harvests for Lake Winnebago.
The Southwest Winnebago registration station continues to have the most fish weighing over 100 pounds, with five for the season thus far. A total of 74 lake sturgeon were harvested on Lake Winnebago, with 30 males, 30 adult females and 14 juvenile females. Based on reports, finding those clear pockets of water is a spearer’s best bet at success.
Access issues continue to plague the Upriver lakes, with lower-than-normal harvest for an opening weekend. Still, that doesn’t mean all spearers had issues. A total of 47 sturgeon were speared on the Upriver Lakes today, with 32 males, 4 adult females and 11 juvenile females. This brings the total fish harvested in the Upriver Lakes thus far this season to 97 males, 17 adult females and 20 juvenile females.
View the full details in today’s harvest report.
It is still always a good day when the traditions of spearing are passed from generation to generation.
Today, 12-year-old Kolby Worth successfully speared his first fish on the Upriver Lakes with a 21.1 lbs., 47.5 inch male lake sturgeon. 16-year-old Jake Reitzke also speared his first fish today on Lake Winnebago, an 81.2-pound, 63.3-inch fish. Congratulations to you both – we hope to see you successfully registering fish for years to come.
Lake Winnebago continues to prove there are a significant number of large fish in this system. After the large fish yesterday, another large individual came in today. Joseph Miller successfully speared a 161.9-pound, 81.9-inch female lake sturgeon. The most surprising thing is that this fish wasn’t even an F4 female full of eggs. This fish was still about a year away from spawning and could have likely weighed an additional 40-50 pounds next year. Fish like this remarkable specimen are a testament to how healthy this ecosystem is to support a fish this size.
Overall, it was a good opening weekend, with a good number of fish coming in. With the new snow, we are hopeful that we will see better water clarity this week. Congrats to all who were successful over the weekend, and good luck to those who are continuing to take to the ice this week.
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No Ice Is 100% Safe
If using UTVs on the ice, here are a few basic safety tips to remember:
- Remember UTVs are heavy. They are the heaviest recreational vehicle out on the ice, often being close to 3,000 pounds. This is similar to a car or truck.
- Have a plan in case you do go through the ice.
- Roll your window down when traveling on the ice and make sure you can easily open your door – drive slow and turn the radio down so that you can use eyes and ears to watch and hear for potential issues coming up.
- Make sure you have life jackets or some other type of floatation for every occupant of the UTV.
- Recovery for the UTV or other vehicle is the responsibility of the owner/operator. After 30 days, the owner can be fined each day after 30 days.
- Recovery rates for the machine can also be very expensive.
- This may not be the year to explore new locations – stick to known areas that typically have better ice conditions.
- Never consume alcohol or drugs before or during your ride.
- Carry a cell phone, and let people know where you are going and when you’ll return home.
- Watch for pressure ridges or ice buckling. These can be dangerous due to thin ice and open water.
Remember – the DNR does not monitor ice conditions. Local fishing clubs, outfitters and bait shops are the best sources for local current ice conditions.
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Additional information on the Winnebago system sturgeon spearing season can be found on the DNR website.
Fond du Lac Co., WI – With fluffy snowflakes falling throughout the day, thousands of spearers once again took the ice of the Winnebago System for the opening of the lake sturgeon spearing season.
After less than ideal ice conditions last season, many spearers breathed a sigh of relief as they headed out today. Even with water clarity making conditions on Lake Winnebago extremely difficult, spearers and spectators alike both had an air of excitement about them at the start of this season. A total of 169 lake sturgeon were speared throughout the system on this opening day: 19 juvenile females, 57 adult females and 93 males.
While shanty counts will happen tomorrow, most shacks seemed to be on the west side of Lake Winnebago. Despite the poor water clarity, many spearers found success, with 82 lake sturgeon harvested on Lake Winnebago (28 males, 44 adult females and 10 juvenile females). Both the Downtown Oshkosh and Neenah registration stations had the majority of lake sturgeon registered with 21 and 25, respectively.
While water clarity doesn’t have as much of an effect on the Upriver Lakes, access on to the ice seemed to be limiting factor for those spearing Upriver today. Despite the access issues, 87 lake sturgeon were speared on the Upriver Lakes (65 males, 13 adult females, and 9 juvenile females). Because most access points were difficult to access, most of the harvest was being registered at the Poygan registration station with a total of 53 fish.
View the full details in today’s harvest report.
There was so much excitement, with many enjoying long-standing traditions and lots of people coming from out of state once again to try their hand at spearing a lake sturgeon.
One such spearer, Harold Richard, comes up from Arizona just about every year to spear with his friends. After about 15 years of spearing, luck finally found him on this cloudy, snowy day spearing a 51.9-inch, 28.9-pound, FV lake sturgeon. Congrats Harold.
Luck struck many spearers on Lake Winnebago today, including Hayley Herzig who speared the fourth largest fish on the Winnebago system with an F4 female weighing a whopping 180.5 pounds and measuring 79.3 inches long. This was a truly impressive fish and she had a lot of family and friends there to help celebrate.
It was exciting getting to see so many people take to the ice this year, and we look forward to what the rest of the season has to offer. Congratulations to all successful spearers!
For those planning on heading out Sunday, please continue to practice good ice safety. For everyone else, thank you for coming out to celebrate the spearers and these incredible fish at the registration stations.
Fond du Lac Co., WI – The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is preparing for the sturgeon spearing season that opens Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, on the Winnebago System.
Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR
With one of the largest lake sturgeon populations in North America, the Winnebago System supports an annual spearing season that runs for a maximum of 16 days (it closes Feb. 23) or until any of the predetermined harvest caps have been met.
If any harvest cap is met early, a closure notice will be posted to the DNR’s Winnebago
System Sturgeon Spearing webpage and sent to subscribers of the DNR’s Sturgeon Spearing Updates email list.
Season Predictions
The sturgeon spearing harvest is usually dictated in part by water clarity and ice conditions on the Upriver Lakes and Lake Winnebago. This year’s assessments indicate poor water clarity, which could lead to a lengthy spearing season on Lake Winnebago. The DNR does not check water clarity on the Upriver Lakes, but due to their shallow water, clarity is usually not a major factor in predicting harvest on these waterbodies.
Spearers will be able to find the season forecast and daily harvest updates on the Winnebago System Sturgeon Spearing webpage and via email.
Registration Information
The DNR reminds spearers that once they have successfully speared a sturgeon, the tag must be validated by tearing off the bottom portion, the sturgeon must then be brought to an official registration station, and the spearer needs to be in line by 2 p.m. on the day it was speared.
Any sturgeon harvested from Lake Winnebago must be registered at one of the registration stations on Lake Winnebago, and any sturgeon harvested from the Upriver Lakes (lakes Poygan, Butte des Morts or Winneconne) must be registered at one of the Upriver Lakes registration stations.
Please check the 2025 sturgeon spearing regulations for specifics.
Stay Safe While Spearing
Spearers and spectators are reminded that no ice is 100% safe. The DNR does not monitor ice conditions, so check with local fishing clubs and conservation groups for local ice conditions.
Get tips for staying safe on the ice from the DNR’s Ice Safety webpage.
Share Your Spearing Experience
The DNR is looking for photos of the spearing season for communication and outreach efforts. Photos of cutting in, shanty life, spearers with their catch or any other part of the spearing tradition are encouraged.
