Anglers warned to watch for ice for Wisconsin opener

More northern Wisconsin waters are melting in time for the Saturday inland fishing season opener and walleyes are likely to have finished spawning in many lakes, state fisheries officials said Tuesday.

Justine Hasz, Wisconsin’s fisheries director, noted much of the state is experiencing temperatures in the 70s this week, with a few 80s mixed in, and that means that ice conditions are highly variable and changing quickly.

There’s still plenty of ice on bodies of water like the Gile Flowage, near Hurley.

Chief DNR Warden Todd Schaller said anglers planning to travel to northern Wisconsin to fish will want to check in with local bait shops or fishing clubs to get a read on ice and fishing conditions.

“No ice is safe ice, so anyone venturing out should use caution and know before you go,” Schaller said. He also advises anglers to wear life jackets, fish with someone else, take a cell phone and tell someone about plans.

“Walleye spawning will be active and during late ice-out years, peak spawning activity occurs quickly and could be over in as little as three to five days. Walleye anglers will want to focus on the shallows, particularly along rock and cobble shorelines. Live bait combos such as jigs and minnows always bode well early in the season, as do small minnow stickbaits and crankbaits,” said Mike Vogelsang, northern Wisconsin DNR fisheries district supervisor.

Deliveries of fish to some northern inland waters will be delayed beyond the May 5 fishing opener because of road weight limits and ice conditions.

Weber Lake, in Iron County, is scheduled to receive 2,900 yearling rainbows.

“Weather conditions haven’t allowed us to stock all the fish we planned by the inland opener, but we’re working on it as fast as we can,” said Dave Giehtbrock, fish culture leader. “We are waiting for road limits and ice to go off in the north.”

Around 740,000 catchable rainbow, brown, brook and lake trout will be stocked in more than 400 waters this spring.

Lake Superior

Lake Superior is slowly opening up for boats. Currently access to open water is available from Port Wing to Cornucopia.

A few fishermen have braved ice conditions to set sail out of Saxon Harbor, but there’s shore ice and floating ice there.

Saxon Harbor landings will be closed for the season beginning May 15 for repairs that will include dredging.

Lake Superior anglers are reporting success near shore for brown trout and cohos.

The fishing season on many Lake Superior tributaries opened on Saturday, March 31. Brule River steelhead fishing carries a minimum length limit of 26 inches, as it is for tributaries. Recent run-off has caused the river’s flow to increase and clarity to decrease.