Strap ’em down, fellas.
We’re in the midst of a fantastic run of cold temperatures here in Wisconsin, and even in the southern third of the state where I live, we have a good foot of solid ice in most places. Further upstate, and in places like northern Minnesota, we’re talking a good 3 feet or more. The southern mind can not comprehend…
Last year, the ice fishing season was painfully short, but this is the first time in a few years that we’ve had a good month or more of great ice across the whole state. I can look out the window and it looks like a small town is being built on the lake… it’s just fantastic. Frying up some perch and some walleye, lots of cold beer and good friends, it is something that everyone needs to experience at one point in their life. And then depending on where you’re at, some hard water anglers target monster lake trout, big muskies… we’re talking real behemoths that barely fit through the hole.
But with these great ice fishing temperatures has come some insanely windy days. A couple days ago the winds were absolutely RIPPING, and for some ice fishermen out on Lake Winnebago, one of the largest freshwater lakes in the entire country, it was more than they could handle. Just for reference, Lake Winnebago is a whopping 137,700 acres, which is on par with lake such as Sam Rayburn, Lake Tahoe, Lake Mead, Eufaula… it’s massive.
One angler caught some wild videos of the action from a side by side, and let’s just say that it was pretty hilarious:
“Better make sure she’s staked down tight! Ice shanty’s were blowing all around yesterday on Lake Winnebago as sturgeon enthusiasts got ready for the weekend! Hope everyone has a fun and safe weekend.”
The commentary, particularly from folks in the south and out west in California, was absolutely hilarious:
“California chiming in here…. Whuuuuuuuut in the actual freak flag is going on…?”
“There is nothing in the world that could get me to drive on a frozen lake. Terrifying. I’ll stay in CA, give me earthquakes!”
“Question from someone who’s always lived in the South. How in the hell do you know that it’s “thick enough” where you are?”
“100% positive you will never see me on the ice. Frozen solid, risk of death, to catch a fish? Nope.”
“Everything about this is fascinating.”
“Ice fishing has never made sense to me.”
“Can someone explain like I’m Californian what’s going on here.”
“I hate to admit, I have no idea what a SHANNY is and even googled it.”
Good stuff…
For those unfamiliar, sturgeon spearing season actually kicked off this weekend on Lake Winnebago, bringing thousands out to join in on the action. According to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, 169 lake sturgeon were speared on in the Winnebago system on opening day, including the 4th largest ever on the lake. In total, the harvest included 19 juvenile females, 57 adult females and 93 males.
Look at this 180-pound TANK:
Hayley Herzig speared her first sturgeon and it was a whopping 180#!! It weighs in as the fourth largest lake sturgeon ever speared on the Winnebago system.
You go girl!#wisconsin #sturgeonspearing #sturgeonspearing2025 pic.twitter.com/SYFyKAImBC— 🦃🎙️ Carrie Z 🎙️🇺🇲 (@HuntFishTravel) February 8, 2025
Once again, the southern mind can not comprehend…
The season lasts for 16 days, or until the harvest cap is reached.
