Walleyes, bluegills, pike, oh my! Wisconsin sport fishing season opens Saturday

Saturday is the opening day of game fishing season in Wisconsin, and 17-year-old Spencer Dahl has big plans to hit all of his summer fishing hotspots on day one.

Then, he plans to do it again on Sunday.

Spencer, an Ozaukee County resident, and his friends like to troll the waters of Lake Michigan and the Milwaukee River for northern pike and bass, sometimes on foot and sometimes by kayak or boat.

“Our strategy is to find the places that normally people would not like to fish, like going off roads and walking through deep bushes and brush,” Spencer said.

This year, he and his friends are upping the ante with a competition to see who can catch the most weight. There are rules — every catch must be photographed, weighed and time-stamped — and there’s a prize: a $20 gift card to Fleet Farm.

“It’s gonna be a fun weekend,” he said.

Spencer and his friends will be joining thousands of other anglers across the state who take part in opening weekend festivities, when angling resumes after a hiatus from March to May each year between the summer and ice fishing seasons.

Justine Hasz, director of the Bureau of Fisheries Management for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, said fishing seasons and zones are designed to protect fish when they’re spawning.

“Fish actually spawn at different water temperatures,” she said. Walleye, for example, spawn when the temperature is in the low-40s. Sturgeon like the temperatures to be around 50 degrees, and crappies prefer upper-50s, near 60 degrees.

“So the different seasons are really trying to help us protect those adults as they’re spawning to produce the next year’s classes of fish.”

Waiting for the ice to melt

Wisconsin sells about 1.4 million fishing licenses each year.

Any angler age 16 and older must purchase a Wisconsin fishing license, which is available online as well as at a number of local bait shops, chain stores and gas stations. Licenses can be purchased year round and are good for one year.

As of April 30, Hasz said that just over 310,000 licenses had been sold, which is down from the same time in 2020 and 2021.

Hasz said the lower numbers are probably due to colder spring weather.

“Since late April, the ice conditions in the northern part of the state made it difficult for people to fish for the species that were open,” Hasz said.

Where she lives, near Woodruff, the ice finally started to come off the lakes last week, though some larger lakes may still have portions of ice coverage.

Hasz said it’s not unusual to see some ice at the start of the fishing season, but it’s a little unusual for such a late season. Because the season always opens on the first Saturday in May, the 7th is the latest possible start.

“The biggest thing that it does is even though the ice only just came off, those water temperatures are really quite cold. So the fish in the north part of the state might not be quite as active as those fish in the southern lakes,” Hasz said.

And it could be worse.

“In 2013, I think they were actually ice fishing on the opening of the fish season,” Hasz said.

Warmer weather for opening weekend

Luckily, the weather this weekend looks to be pretty warm and Hasz said she expects a surge in license purchases just before Saturday.

This is good news for businesses like Hayward’s Angler’s Haven Resort — a bar and restaurant with cabin rentals on Lac Courte Oreilles.

On Wednesday, owner Kelsey Gensmer was busy staining the patio deck and getting ready for their big opening weekend.

“We usually are very busy this weekend,” Gensmer said. “We open on Friday before fishing, so everybody comes up all excited to come here and get their pizza and beer they haven’t had all season.”

With ice conditions, Gensmer said opening weekend can be a bit of a gamble, so they generally have a few open rentals, but they’re already booked up for the rest of summer. And Gensmer said she’s excited to meet new guests and anglers.

“I just hope everybody has a good safe fishing opener weekend,” Gensmer said. “Check all the new regulations for fishing … get your fishing licenses.”

How to fish responsibly

Having a fishing license is only one part of being a responsible angler.

Every lake or body of water has different regulations for the fish in it — usually size and bag limits. Hasz said these rules are often posted at boat landings but can also be found on the DNR website, where you can search by county and body of water.

Hasz said anglers should also be mindful of their catch and release methods. This means limiting the amount of time fish spend out of water and handling them with wet or gloved hands to protect their delicate scales.

“We want to make sure when those fish are released, they’ve got the best chance to survive and grow bigger and allow other people the opportunity to catch them,” Hasz said.

And she said the safety measures are not just for the fish.

Hasz said the water, especially in the northern part of the state, is still very cold. Wearing a life jacket is an easy way to protect yourself.

“I just want to make sure that the anglers that we have across the state have a fun and safe time on the water,” Hasz said. “I just love to see folks out there enjoying these amazing resources that we have in Wisconsin.”

And if you’re fishing near Woodruff, you just might see her on the water this weekend.

“I like fishing for bluegill and crappies,” Hasz said. “If I get walleye on I really enjoy it, but I like it when there’s a little more action on the end of my line.”