Tag: sturgeon

Ice fisherman spears 177-pound sturgeon, joins Heavy Hitters Club

A fisherman accomplished a rare feat on Valentine’s Day while ‘sturgeon spearing’ on Lake Winnebago. Yeah, it’s a thing in Wisconsin.

Fishermen outside Wisconsin might not grasp the concept, but Wisconsinites certainly are familiar with sturgeon spearing, so they can appreciate the “once-in-a-lifetime” fish landed by James Gishkowsky on Valentine’s Day.

Gishkowsky speared a 177.3-pound female sturgeon through a hole in the ice on Lake Winnebago, giving him entrance into the Heavy Hitters Club reserved for those who spear a sturgeon over 170 pounds on the Lake Winnebago system.

It was the seventh-largest sturgeon speared since 1941, and the largest since 2013 when a 179-pounder was landed. The record is 212.2 pounds and 84.2 inches long, speared in 2010.

Also on FTW Outdoors: Ice fisherman catches odd-looking fish that was considered suspicious

Gishkowsky’s sturgeon measured 79.9 inches or nearly 6-foot-8, just 4 inches shorter than Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, according to the Fond du Lac Reporter, which also stated that the fish is “`taller’ than 10 of the Bucks’ 15 player’s listed heights.”

“It was a big adrenaline rush,” Gishkowsky told the Reporter.

Gishkowsky told WTAQ that he had to call in reinforcements to help him hoist the fish out of the hole, adding that “it’s a-once-in-a-lifetime [experience].”

Gishkowsky plans to have the fish mounted, and said it will hang in TJ’s Harbor Restaurant in Van Dyne.

For those unfamiliar with sturgeon spearing, it is “a sport rich in tradition” in the Winnebago system, as stated on the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources website.

The season is from the second Saturday in February and lasts for 16 days or until any of the sex-specific harvest caps for that fishery are reached. Spearers can fish from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day and must register their fish by 2 p.m. on the same day.

Spearers typically fish from a darkened shack on the ice, giving them better visibility. They use various types of decoys as attractants, and use a spear with a long handle up to 8-feet in length, with a detachable spearhead. It kind of looks like a flattened pitchfork.

Gishkowsky told WTAQ he’s only ever seen three sturgeon before spearing the 177-pounder. His previous biggest sturgeon speared weighed 96 pounds.

Photo courtesy of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Giant river monster’s ‘insane jump’ takes Internet by storm

Footage showing a giant sturgeon leaping next to a fishing boat has garnered millions of views as it showcases the power and grace of these so-called living dinosaurs.

Footage showing a giant sturgeon leaping next to a fishing boat has garnered millions of views as it showcases the power and grace of these so-called living dinosaurs.

The accompanying footage, captured during a Yves Bisson charter on British Columbia’s Fraser River, shows the nearly 10-foot sturgeon breaking the surface during a ferocious attempt to shake the hook before rolling over and diving out of sight.

Bisson, who runs Yves Bisson Sturgeon Co., stated this week via Instagram:

“This was an insane jump right beside the boat. Unbelievable this video already has 55M views on TikTok and will most likely be my most viewed video of the year soon.”

Bisson told FTW Outdoors on Thursday morning that the TikTok viewership had since grown to more than 57 million. (Click here to watch the TikTok version.)

ALSO: Why a young polar bear was ‘removed from the wild’ in Alaska

The footage is popular, obviously, because of the size and prehistoric appearance of the sturgeon. White sturgeon date back 200 million years and are often described as living dinosaurs.

Viewers obviously noticed the bony plates on the sturgeon’s body as the fish rolled over to embark on another run.

Bisson Told FTW Outdoors that the fish was tagged and released as part of ongoing research of white sturgeon on the Fraser River. It measured 9 feet, 10 inches, boasted a girth of 54 inches, and weighed 550 pounds.

Bisson states on his website that sturgeon are “the world’s largest and most powerful freshwater fish” and that his clients occasionally battle fish weighing nearly 1,000 pounds.

Recreational sturgeon fishing on the Fraser River is strictly catch and release.

Record sturgeon catch described as ‘exceedingly rare’

A Idaho lake known for bass and crappie fishing is now famous for having produced the state-record white sturgeon.

A Idaho lake known for bass and crappie fishing is now famous for having produced the state-record white sturgeon.

Greg Poulsen, visiting from Utah, landed the nearly 10-foot, 4-inch sturgeon Aug. 5 after a marathon battle at C.J. Strike Reservoir.

White sturgeon, the largest freshwater fish in North America, are protected in Idaho and the state only recognizes catch-and-release records.

ALSO: Sea lion’s wild ride on humpback whale captured in photos

The sturgeon released by Poulsen measured 124 inches (10.33 feet). The previous record was 119.5 inches, set in 2019.

The Idaho Department of Fish and Game, which announced the record on Friday, explained that white sturgeon exceeding 10 feet are “exceedingly rare” anywhere but the deep-running Hells Canyon stretch of the Snake River.

Even in Hells Canyon, though, of the more than 4,000 white sturgeon counted during IDFG surveys over the past 30 years, only 10 sturgeon exceeded 10 feet.

“So, yes, they do exist, but these are very rare and special fish,” the IDFG stated Friday.

Sturgeon populations in Idaho have declined sharply from historic levels because of dams, pollution and over harvesting.

The release-only rule has been in place since 1971. But Idaho does list a rod-and-reel weight record for white sturgeon: a 394-pound fish caught on the Snake River by Glenn Howard in 1956.

The state also has record of a 675-pound white sturgeon caught via set line in 1908.

C.J. Strike Reservoir is an impoundment of the Snake River and Bruneau River.

Poulsen and his wife, Angie, and friend Wendy Guess – all from Eagle Mountain, Utah – are pictured posing with the record sturgeon in the water. Hoisting sturgeon even for photos is banned.

[listicle id=1945548]

Angler shatters catfish record while fishing for sturgeon

An Idaho angler who was targeting sturgeon at C.J. Strike Reservoir last week shattered the state catch-and-release length record for channel catfish.

An Idaho angler has shattered the state catch-and-release length record for channel catfish.

Paul Newman landed the 42.5-inch catfish while fishing for sturgeon July 20 at C.J. Strike Reservoir. The previous length record was 33 inches, for a catfish caught at Lake Lowell in 2020.

According to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Newman’s catfish tipped his digital scale at 37 pounds before he turned it loose.  Had the fish been weighed on a certified scale it would have shattered the existing weight record of 32.9 pounds.

ALSO: Angler in Mexico lands mystery fish ‘with human teeth’

“While this fish will earn a Catch-and-Release Record, the fish was easily large enough to beat the current 32.9-pound Certified Weight Record set only a few weeks ago by Cody Kastner, also from C.J. Strike Reservoir,” the IDFG stated.

C.J. Strike Reservoir spans 7,500 acres on the Snake and Bruneau rivers in southwestern Idaho.

–Image showing Paul Newman with his record catfish is courtesy of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game

Boy’s latest fish of a lifetime is ‘an absolute giant’

Avid fisherman Tyler Grimshaw, 12, is in the news again, this time with a white sturgeon catch on the Snake River. It’s his third “fish of a lifetime.”

Avid fisherman Tyler Grimshaw, age 12, is in the news yet again, this time with his third fish of a lifetime, one he described as “an absolute giant.”

Tyler, fishing the Snake River with his father Lance Grimshaw and local guide Joe Weisner, landed a 9-foot, 11-inch sturgeon, and missed tying the Idaho record for a caught-and-released white sturgeon by a half inch.

The current record is 119½ inches caught by seven anglers on July 9, 2019, also on the Snake River, according to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. Tyler’s catch in inches was 119, but he did it with no outside help, which ordinarily would make him the record-holder.

“Tyler sat on that rod and pumped that fish for 50 minutes,” Weisner told Outdoor Life. “He wasn’t about to hand that rod over to nobody. The fish jumped a total of four times. It jumped once right next to the boat—maybe 2 feet away. It was terrifying.”

“A fish of this caliber, it doesn’t come around very often,” Weisner told KTVB. “This fish was far bigger than anything I had ever seen before. I was at a loss for words it was so large. It’s one of those moments that was truly incredible.”

It was actually Tyler’s second sturgeon catch of the day; he reeled in a 7-footer in the first 20 minutes on the river. But the best, and biggest, was yet to come.

“They knew from the start of the fight that it was massive,” Vanessa Grimshaw, Tyler’s mother, told USA Today/For The Win Outdoors.

Also on FTW Outdoors: Former NHL star catches huge sturgeon claimed to be a world record

Weisner told KTVB the obvious, that Tyler hooked into a fish of a lifetime. And indeed he did. Again.

“No one has realized he is the same kid that made headlines two previous times with his 41- and 48-pound lake trout. He has gotten a ‘fish of a lifetime’ three times now.”

Each year he seems to catch a fish of a lifetime.

At age 10, Tyler landed the 41-pound lake trout from Flaming Gorge.

At age 11, Tyler landed the 48-pound lake trout from Flaming Gorge, and that was a near-record catch.

“[He had] maybe a drop of disappointment that he didn’t beat the record [with his sturgeon],” Vanessa told For The Win Outdoors. “He isn’t giving up. He says the record will be his eventually.”

Could that be what he does for an encore at age 13? Stay tuned.

Photos courtesy of Joe Weisner of Jones Sport Fishing.

Kayak fisherman lands 350-pound sturgeon, and it’s on video

If not for being in a kayak, Braeden Rouse would have lost the huge sturgeon he hooked into while fishing on Canada’s famous Fraser River last week.

If not for being in a kayak, Braeden Rouse would have lost the huge sturgeon he hooked into while fishing on Canada’s famous Fraser River last week.

In a battle that lasted 30 minutes, Rouse managed to land an 8½-foot sturgeon that weighed an estimated 350 pounds, and his girlfriend Sidney Kozelenko captured it in video.

The footage, posted on the Adventures with Braeden and Sid Facebook page, is actually pretty comical as it shows Rouse being towed in zig-zags up and down the river.

“We laugh every time we watch it,” Rouse told USA Today/For The Win Outdoors.

To get the video footage, Kozelenko was forced to get into her own kayak and follow him. You can clearly see the speed at which the sturgeon pulls him.

“He’s pulling you faster than I can paddle,” Kozelenko said at one point in the video.

At times, the battle was a bit dicey.

“There was three times I nearly tipped as the sturgeon aggressively swam away,” Rouse told For The Win Outdoors. “I had to keep the rod tip at the bow of the boat just to avoid tipping.

Also on FTW Outdoors: Catch of enormous ‘living dinosaur’ had anglers in disbelief

“A sturgeon guide told me he’s had clients catch sturgeon this size, and they normally trade off throughout the battle fighting this size of sturgeon and are standing in a boat. The fact I was sitting in a kayak was crazy.

“I’ve shared my pictures on a few sturgeon pages and many are pretty shocked I caught a sturgeon this size out of a kayak.

“If I wouldn’t have had my kayak, this fish would have just kept swimming with its sheer power until I had no line left on my spool. I would I have lost it.”

Credit also goes to Kozelenko, who helped in the landing. As the fish tired, both paddled close to shore. Kozelenko beached her kayak, got out and tied a rope to Rouse’s kayak and pulled him to shore. Rouse was then able to get out and finish the remaining seconds of the battle on land.

“I hadn’t quite realized how big this fish actually was until we got our first glimpse,” Rouse told For The Win Outdoors. “The pictures really don’t do it justice.”

After getting photos, Rouse released the huge sturgeon.

“I love the release part of catching a fish,” he told For The Win Outdoors. “This one was particularly rewarding. The fish swam gracefully away with a lot more spunk than I would have figured after the battle. When it gave its last push, the tail fin came nearly two feet out of the water.”

This was “by far” the biggest sturgeon Rouse has ever caught. His previous best measured 62 inches.

Photos courtesy of Braeden Rouse.

67-pound sturgeon top catch in ‘season’ that lasts only minutes

If Michigan anglers eagerly anticipated this year’s Black Lake sturgeon season, it appears to have come and gone in the blink of an eye.

For Michiganders who eagerly anticipated this year’s Black Lake sturgeon-fishing season, it appears to have come and gone in the blink of an eye.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources announced Monday that the entire season closed after only 36 minutes Saturday, after a six-fish quota was reached.

“That’s how long Michigan’s shortest fishing season lasted this year,” the MDNR stated on Facebook.

The six-fish quota was designed to allow some harvest while ensuring the continued good health of the lake sturgeon fishery in the Cheboygan River watershed. But it’s unclear if participants expected the quota to be filled so quickly, despite a registered field of 565 fishermen and women.

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: Ice fisherman lands ‘extremely rare’ golden crappie

According to the MDNR, the season began at 8 a.m. and closed at 8:36 a.m.

Harvested fish included a 67-pound male sturgeon (the largest), a 48-pound female sturgeon (the day’s first catch), and four male sturgeon that weighed between 23 and 45 pounds.

Spearing and hook-and-line angling were allowed.

To prevent going over the quota, the MDNR utilized text messages and staff visits to ice-fishing shanties to announce the end of fishing.

All six fish had been captured and released previously by researchers conducting surveys during Black River spawning runs, or on Black Lake.

Watch: Angler beyond impressed as 9-foot sturgeon leaps from river

A woman fishing last week on the Fraser River outside of Vancouver, Canada, hooked a 9-foot sturgeon whose mighty leap was caught on video.

A woman fishing last week on the Fraser River outside of Vancouver, Canada, hooked a 9-foot sturgeon whose ferocious leap was caught on video.

In the footage, Steevie Zdebiak, while struggling against the weight of the massive fish, expresses her disbelief as the airborne sturgeon attempts to shake the hook. (The video, best viewed with sound, contains mild profanity.)

Guide Yves Bisson described the Aug. 1 battle as “insane” and told FTW Outdoors that the sturgeon’s splashdown soaked the anglers and the fish “almost landed in the boat.”

It was the second time in three weeks that a white sturgeon measuring nearly 10 feet propelled so much of its body out of the water during a Yves Bisson Sturgeon Co. charter.

RELATED: Bow fisherman lands record carp; ‘A straight-up monster’

Zdebiak’s husband, Rob, hooked another giant sturgeon at the same time. Bisson, however, focused his camera on Steevie and her fish.

“All heck broke loose,” he said. “It was crazy that we hooked two at once that size and landed them. Both were over 300 pounds and one was over 8 feet, and the other over 9 feet.”

Both fish were carefully released.

White sturgeon can measure 12-plus feet and weigh more than 1,000 pounds. The fish date to prehistoric times and have been described as “living dinosaurs.”

‘All heck breaks loose’ as husband, wife battle massive sturgeon

A woman fishing last week on the Fraser River outside of Vancouver, Canada, hooked a 9-foot sturgeon whose mighty leap was caught on video.

A woman fishing last week on the Fraser River outside of Vancouver, Canada, hooked a 9-foot sturgeon whose mighty leap was caught on video.

In the accompanying footage (best viewed with sound), Steevie Zdebiak, while struggling against the weight of the massive fish, laughs in disbelief as the sturgeon leaps almost clear of the surface.

Guide Yves Bisson described the Aug. 1 outing as “insane” and told FTW Outdoors that the sturgeon’s splashdown soaked the anglers and the fish “almost landed in the boat.”

Perhaps as remarkable was that Zdebiak’s husband, Rob, hooked a different sturgeon of similar size at the same time so two epic fights involving  prehistoric-looking “river monsters” occurred simultaneously.

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: Watch as Yellowstone bison rescue calf from attacking wolves

“All heck broke loose,” Bisson, owner of Yves Bisson Sturgeon Co., said. “It was crazy that we hooked two at once that size and landed them. Both were over 300 pounds and one was over 8 feet, and the other over 9 feet.”

Only Steevie jumped in to pose with the sturgeon before they were unhooked and allowed to swim free. (White sturgeon cannot be harvested on the Lower Fraser River).

White sturgeon can measure 12-plus feet and weigh more than 1,000 pounds. The fish date to prehistoric times and have been described as “living dinosaurs.”

 

Watch: Giant sturgeon leaps from river as angler watches in awe

The crew of a sportfishing charter in British Columbia, Canada, has recorded the epic moment when a 9-foot sturgeon leaps clear of the water while a visibly weary angler clutches his fishing rod while watching in awe.

The crew of a sportfishing charter in British Columbia, Canada, has recorded the epic moment a 9-foot sturgeon leaps clear of the water while an exhausted angler watches in disbelief.

Yves Bisson, who runs Yves Bisson Sturgeon Co., told ABC 6 that the 350-pound sturgeon was caught July 16 on the Fraser River near Chilliwack, and that one point “it almost landed in the boat.”

Bisson, who shared the video on Instagram, estimated the sturgeon to be at least 50 years old and described the catch as “a fish of a lifetime.”

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: Epic humpback whale images captured before Sydney’s lockdown

Bisson tagged and released the sturgeon after taking measurements. His website explains that anglers become “directly involved” with a long-standing sturgeon research program during his excursions.

Bisson had not responded to inquiries by FTW Outdoors at the time of this post.

White sturgeon can exceed 15 feet and weigh more than 1,000 pounds. The fish date to prehistoric times and have been described as “living dinosaurs.”