A freshman at Kewaunee High School, he’s already made some very impressive catches, including a 37-inch brown trout from his home waters last fall.
But last weekend — while fishing with his uncle and a friend on the Oconto River — Brady nearly doubled that length with a spectacular catch, photograph and release (CPR) of a six-foot-long lake sturgeon.
“We got up early in the morning hoping to catch some walleye,” Jackson said. “Then my set line got a bite. I thought it was any normal fish before the whole sturgeon came out of the water. I was thinking it was going to break my rod, or line.”
But after a 40-minute battle on light tackle, Jackson was able to tire the beast out, measure it and get some photos before holding it underwater until it got strong enough to swim off.
The lucky bait? A Canadian nightcrawler on a size 8 hook on six-pound braided line.
Still to come, fall-run salmon and trout, then his favorite: ice fishing.
One of the bonuses to winter fishing in Wisconsin? No mosquitoes.
“I hate mosquitoes,” Jackson said, laughing.
Thousands of Chinook salmon have already been sorted through the first two egg-takes at the Department of Natural Resources’ Strawberry Creek facility near Sturgeon Bay. They’ll be done twice-weekly (Monday and Thursday) for at least another week.
Meanwhile, pumps have been running for a week now at the Besadny Anadromous Fisheries Facility on the Kewaunee River. The annual open house there is set for Saturday from 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
A few coho and brown trout have entered the major rivers, but smaller creeks are still too low to attract much. Monday’s rain didn’t raise water levels enough to change that.
Gorgeous weather has allowed anglers to get out after younger salmon and all ages of rainbow trout on Lake Michigan, and perch, bass, walleyes, pike and muskies on Green Bay.
Fall colors are getting brighter inland, where panfish, bass and pike are hitting, along with stocked and wild trout. The general inland trout stream fishing season ends Oct. 15.
This Saturday is both October Big Day and World Migratory Bird Day, an opportunity to unite over a shared love of birds while providing scientists with crucial data.
The international campaign, organized by a network of global partners, calls for urgent and sustained action to protect migratory birds and the insects and habitat they depend on for survival. This year’s theme is “Shared Spaces: Creating Bird-Friendly Cities and Communities.
Just like Global Big Day in May, October Big Day attracts birders from around the world. Last October, more than 1.2 million people participated by identifying birds with the Merlin Bird ID app. More than 63,000 eBirders submitted checklists from 203 countries. The event set records for both the number of people ID’ing birds and the number of countries participating.
Anyone can participate, even from home. Learn at https://ebird.org/octoberbigday and https://www.migratorybirdday.org/.
This weekend’s annual youth gun deer hunt offers an excellent opportunity for youngsters age 15 and under to get out and experience an early hunt with experienced mentors.
It’s not a free tag, as the youths must be licensed and report any harvests on their regular buck or antlerless permits.
Mentors must be within arm’s reach of youth age 11 and under, or those age 12 to 15 without hunter education, at all times.
If the youth is 12 to 15 and has successfully completed hunter education, the adult mentor must at least be within voice and visual contact of the youth without the aid of a mechanical/electrical amplifying device (other than a hearing aid).
Six hounds were killed by wolves in three separate incidents in Langlade County recently, and two others were injured. See a map of all confirmed wolf depredations at https://dnrmaps.wi.gov/H5/?viewer=GRAY_WOLF_DEPREDATION.
Through Oct. 3, wolves have killed 22 hunting dogs and wounded 16 others this year. Other confirmed wolf kills include more than 30 calves, steers and cows, along with a pet dog, miniature horse, royal yak, mule, cat, duck and chicken. Wolves have also wounded two pet dogs and two livestock guard dogs, and harassed hundreds of livestock and some pets. There have also been five verified human health and safety complaints.
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