This coming Saturday is the start of the biggest fishing derby in Wisconsin on Lake Winnebago that started 94 years ago in 1932. It requires no hooks or bobbers but tons and tons of patience. Do you know what it is? It’s sturgeon spearing season! 13,000 gamblers will try their luck at harvesting a modern-day dinosaur. 

The sturgeon spearing season is scheduled to last a maximum of 16 days but even that is a game of chance. The season’s length is determined by a mathematical formula consisting of a harvest percentage of adult males, adult females and juvenile fish. It’s a little complicated for me but the historical proven track record indicates that the formula is working, and the overall sturgeon population is thriving. The annual average weight of sturgeon speared is also rising, which is a great sign for the resource. Last year alone there were 63 fish brought in that weighed over 100 pounds.

I took part in my very first spearing season last year. From hauling the shack onto the ice, to cutting the hole in the ice and to the registration stations, I was in awe of the entire experience. If you combined a Badger football game with an ice fishing tournament you would come up with a vibe and atmosphere that is the Wisconsin sturgeon spearing experience. Foam sturgeon hats, commemorative beer mugs and spearing hoodies helped solidify the festive atmosphere. I came home from last year’s event with one recurring thought: Why have I never done that before?

I saw some things las year that I didn’t fully understand until I got home and perused the Winnebago Spearing sites online. For example, I didn’t know that local fishing clubs help monitor, maintain and are pretty much responsible for the bridgework that is laid across the numerous cracks in the ice that occur no matter how arctic the temperatures are. There is no charge for crossing these bridges, but a $20 donation is encouraged and most are glad to pay.

Discarded Christmas trees are repurposed for navigational and mileage markers. The distance from shores is marked as two trees equals one mile, three trees equals two miles, four trees equals three miles, and so on. The trees are also tipped or angled towards the nearest shore. Trees that are lying down on their side, rather than upright, signify poor ice conditions or a dangerous hazard in that area. All are good things to know.

My sturgeon spearing sensei Dan told me how to prepare for the season while we were sitting in his shack last year. I was very curious to find out how someone prepares for six hours of staring down into a giant hole in the ice. Sturgeon Dan delivered his advice like a Bob Uecker deadpan punchline. “You sit in a chair and stare at the television for six hours straight, but you don’t turn it on.” Initially I laughed at the humor in the statement but by the end of the season I knew that is exactly what the sturgeon spearing experience was all about.

This season I will be going as an observer because, full disclosure, it seems that I applied for an Upriver Permit which requires some preference points instead of applying for a normal spearing tag. Lesson learned.

Even without a tag I am excited about heading over to Lake Winnebago for the chance to be part of a successful sturgeon spearing experience. What are my odds of that happening? My chances of winning the Mega Millions lottery is about 1 in 290,000,000. My chances of getting four aces in Texas Holdem is around 1 in 65,000. That makes sturgeon spearing odds in my favor at 1 in a little over 100. Yes, I’m feeling lucky.

Didn’t get enough Dave this week? Visit “Outdoor Trails and Tales with Dave Beck” on Facebook or at  ottwithdavebeck on Instagram for photos and video of Dave’s adventures. You can share your own photos and video with him there as well, or by emailing him at dave@piercecountyjournal.news Also, check out OTT content on Instagram @thepiercecountyjournal