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MADISON -- Wisconsin anglers are anxiously awaiting a spring thaw that will trigger the spawning migration of thousands of steelhead from Lake Michigan up its tributary streams. March and April are prime months to catch the silvery steelhead on the rivers and streams that flow into the lake, or to watch fisheries staff collect eggs from some of the fish at facilities along rivers near Racine and Kewaunee.
"We had an excellent run last year, and we are expecting fishing to be as good, if not better, this spring," says Matt Coffaro, Department of Natural Resources regional fisheries biologist for southeastern Wisconsin. "Spring steelheading is very weather dependent -- the amount of rain or snow melt dictates what the current flows will be like on the tributaries.
"High water with a strong flow will attract fish but make fishing conditions difficult. The key is to be there when the flow starts decreasing after a high water event."
Every year, fisheries staff stock about 500,000 steelhead in Lake Michigan. Lake Michigan trout do not successfully reproduce naturally in the freshwater streams, so DNR staff collect eggs from steelhead migrating up the Root and Kewaunee rivers, where the department operates facilities to collect eggs, which are then hatched, raised to small fish and stocked back in Wisconsin waters.
"If we didn’t collect the eggs we wouldn’t get the steelhead in Lake Michigan because there’s no natural reproduction, so our operation is vital to the steelhead fishery," says Mike Baumgartner, manager of the C.D. "Buzz" Besadny Anadromous Fisheries Facility along the Kewaunee River.
The other egg-collecting facility is the Root River Steelhead Facility near Racine. Both weirs, in addition to providing eggs for the stocking program, are used for educational purposes. The public can observe the DNR spawn fish or gather biological information and learn more about the fish.
Lake Michigan steelhead live a life similar to that of their sea-faring ancestors in the Pacific Northwest. The lake substitutes for the ocean, and the fish return to their tributary streams to spawn, which they may do several times in their lifetime. Steelhead, unlike coho or chinook salmon, don’t die after spawning but return to Lake Michigan. The DNR stocks three different strains of steelhead in Lake Michigan, and each strain migrates at a different time so that steelhead are available to stream anglers for an extended period of time.
Spring steelhead average 4 to 8 pounds, but reports of 15 pound or larger fish are not that uncommon, Coffaro says. Fresh spawn is probably the number one bait. They can also be caught on a wide variety of flies, but any fly that looks like trout eggs are the top producers, especially in orange, pink, or chartreuse.
Major steelhead streams in southeast Wisconsin include the Pigeon and Sheboygan rivers in Sheboygan County, Sauk Creek in Port Washington, the Milwaukee and Menomonee rivers in Milwaukee, Oak Creek in South Milwaukee, the Root River in Racine, and the Pike River in Kenosha.
In northeastern Wisconsin, major steelhead streams include the Manitowoc River and Branch rivers, the Kewaunee and Ahnapee rivers, Stoney Creek, Oconto River and some tributary creeks in Door County.
The Root River Steelhead Facility features a viewing window for an underwater look at the fish. There is no set time when the weir is in operation since the steelhead run depends on weather and stream flows. For more information on the Root River Weir and the latest fishing report call the 24-hour Lake Michigan Fishing Hotline at (414) 382-7920.
The C.D. Buzz Besadny Anadromous Fisheries Facility, which features two underwater viewing windows, is open to the public for viewing every day of the year during daylight hours, but fish are not always present. Please call (920) 288-1025 for exact times when the migration is going on and eggs are being collected.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Matt Coffaro (414) 263-8614 or Mike Baumgartner (920) 388-1025
Uploaded: 3/19/2000
Uploaded: 3/19/2000