When do you think the gamefish season should open/close?

The "first weekend" in March may not always be the reg we fish under down the road for gamefish. Other states do it differently and even in Wisconsin there is some talk of looking into other options. My proposal would be to have a continuous statewide open season, (other than musky) but catch and release from after the first weekend in March until the first weekend in May. I think this would be a good compromise and keep most people happy. How bout' you?

I think if gamefish were open all year, there would still not be a huge amount of guys fishing during March and April. For one, the ice gets iffy. Plus, in March, it's still before most species are spawning anyways, at least up here. Then, once the ice goes off, the weather isn't that great. Most, don't want to be in a boat when it's 45 degrees and super windy with a drizzle in the air. Just look at all the boats off the water after Labor Day every year. Majority fish from a boat from Memorial Day to Labor Day. And, at least for pike, I find them very hard to catch once that ice first goes off. It's so unpredictable where they are and what they are doing. So, I don't think the effect would be that great, but the big thing is that people would have more, not less opportunities to catch fish. And, that's a good thing in my opinion. If harvest is the concern, just make it catch and release.

i fish tip ups for walleye after season closes of course i am on waters where its open year round

"we haven't been able to fish tip ups on pretty much all the lakes for the last month." Yes you can. Use tip-ups for panfish. It's extremely effective and a boatload of fun which allows you to cover water with incredible efficiency.

The DNR rep that I've discussed this issue with told me that there is no clear evidence right now that a continuous open season would harm the fishery. I think some states do have open season year round. We are just used to what we've always had. Maybe it's the best solution-what we have right now... Maybe not. I just look at the certain lakes in southern Wi that are open year round, and some are thriving. Maybe there is a compromise out there, but it seems unfortunate to me that there's 17 inches of ice up here as of today and we haven't been able to fish tip ups on pretty much all the lakes for the last month. I really don't think the fish are spawning on the same schedule as they are in southern Wi, but the regs are very similar. Keep it open till the end of March north of HWY 10. Or, give us a few lakes up here open year round, like they do in southern Wi. Just my opinion.

I would be fine with a catch and release season during what right now is the closed season for game fish. I would also like to see and catch and releases season for muskys on lakes were almost 100% of the muskys are stocked… example : sliver lake in kenosha county

I love it the way it is. This is my panfish season and my favorite time to ice fish. Lake pretty much to myself no more shanty's scattered all over and best of all no tip ups taking up a huge area.

The majority of the lakes in Southern Wisconsin do not have natural reproduction, according to a seminar I attended by the DNR. The fish are stocked for fishermen to catch and eat. That's one of many reasons why there's a 26 inch size limit for northerns and you rarely catch one much bigger than that. Because of this, I am totally in favor of keeping the seasons open year-round, especially in the southern half of the state. Up north where there is natural reproduction, maybe closing the season from April 1st to May 15th would work. On another topic, I sure wish we could keep more 24 inch northerns. I'd be in favor of a slot limit on all gamefish species as well, but this topic would be tricky because each lake would have to be different, depending on how the fish grow in the lake.

changing the rules wont make them more difficult just different again look at deer hunting regs if you want difficult plus its not that people can't read the regulations its that they are too lazy i read the thing from cover to cover every year its not that hard to do i do skip the specific county rules UNLESS i am going to a new lake it only takes a little bit of time the rule books are free so there is no excuse people just need to put down their smart phones or give up a few minutes of youtube or whatever. personally i have too many friends who rely on me to know the rules for them if they are at my house i hand them the little book otherwise i tell them to look it up on the dnr website its free also no sign up or account needed just log on and click your way thru if you are not computer savvy then next time you are somewhere that sells licenses go pick up a rule book its not that hard

Leave it the way it is. People can't read the rule book now. We sure as hell don't need to make it any more difficult.

If the pike regulations are 5 fish and no size up here, and 2 fish 26 inch-down south....and people can work with that and understand it.. Then, I don't think it would be too confusing to extend the season up here for a few more weeks. The fish can't be spawning in the south and the north at the same time. It's a different fishery up here and completely different climate. I know the DNR wants to simplify regs, but I don't think two different seasons is that difficult to work with since the north/south dividing line has been established already. There's a lot of ice up here right now and will continue to be. Maybe a catch and release compromise makes sense. People have had all winter to harvest, and if you make it catch and release, the numbers of people will diminish on the ice and it will have little impact on the fishery. It just would be a nice option to have. If Puckaway can thrive on a 32 inch year round open season, I'm sure the 1,000 plus lakes up here can handle an extra two weeks or so of catch and release. If Michigan can be open till March 15, I think Wi can too. Just my opinion and I have talked with my local DNR rep. and he thinks the season is too short as well.

hot topic here but this is my 2 cents i think several lakes north of hwy 10 could support a longer ice fishing season particularly for pike there are plenty of lakes with a no size limit and five fish limit. i would like to believe that most fishermen (and women) will only keep what they need perhaps a longer season but lower possession limits (3 fish instead of 5)and still protect the bass and walleye. i do like the idea presented here in earlier posts about dividing the state for longer season up north foul hooking and poaching are going to be a problem regardless of when season closes so that argument is not as big of a deal as made out to be the other argument about protecting spawning fish is not as valid as made out to be either. how many pike have you people caught in December that had a belly full of spawn? just saying thats my opinions im off to lake "open year round for all species except musky" this weekend to catch some pike and hopefully my legal to keep 32" as far as the DNR making rules simpler has anyone seen last years deer hunting regs if more people went to spring meetings and put in their two cents the DNR would have no choice but to listen (again look at deer hunting up north) after all remeber who pays the DNR their salary.... we do!!

I agree with NorthernExposure about closing it for the panfish when they spawn, I just don't see it as fair chase when people go out there and bang um off the beds. Also, I personally like the game fish seasons the way they are. Got to have some for next year! With catch and release laws fish will still die. Just my personal views.

I think gamefish should close first part of march until first part of may like it is. And panfish should close When game fish opens until mid June. And bass should be part of the panfish season. This would protect all the spawning fish when people can really overharvest. Panfish really take a beating in mid/late May-early June. That's my opinion.

HERE WE GO AGAIN WISCONSIN. The Gamefish Season is closed as of March 2nd Statewide. This makes absolutely no sense! PLEASE EXTEND THE GAMEFISH SEASON IN CENTRAL AND NORTHERN WISCONSIN! How cool would it be to head to North once the season closes in Southern WI? Instead, you can either just fish Panfish or just watch the ice melt. THIS IS A NO BRAINER!! I propose the close of the WI Gamefish Season - inland waters to be as follows: Southern WI (south of hwy 10) same - 1st Sunday in March. Central WI (South of hwy 8 & North of hwy 10) 2nd Sunday in March. Northern WI (North of hwy 10) 3rd Sunday in March. Please contact your local DNR fisheries person.

That's a good point. Down south I could see some negative impact from an open season. I'd say based on ice longevity, plus just the sheer number of lakes up here, it would be nice to extend the season a bit up north, if not keep it open continuously. I don't think the impact would be that great for the reasons I listed below, but just my opinion. Besides, the pike has a 5 fish, no size limit up here, so is it really even treated as a game fish with regs like that? Why not just keep the season open for pike, catch and release if necessary. Could give us something to do with our tip ups up here on the 3 feet of ice. Plus, helps the economy and keeps people fishing.