Sturgeon tip thread

OK, all this talk of sturgeon has me absolutely pumped for sturgeon season this year. I thought it would be a good idea if we all posted one tip about sturgeon fishing we have picked up over the years. I’ll start.

I like to tie a dock bumper on the end of my anchor rope, that way when someone in the boat hooks up with a big girl I just untie the anchor rope and give it a good throw. Who wants to pull up a 30 lb anchor out of 30-40 feet of water when someone is doing the sturgeon dance in the boat? Then after you just idle over and retie the rope and your fishing again in no time. I know its not a new tip but never hurts to put it out there.

* Have more than one type of bait.

* Use equipment for the job. Nothing less than heavy bass gear.

* I suggest trying one hook with the barb pinched off to see how you like it.

* LIGHTS! Keep all of your lights on at night. Keep your spot light handy and ready to go. Be aware of your background! If your lights blend into the city lights other boaters have a hard time seeing you.

* I’m going with lights on the rod tips this year to help ensure other boats see me. A very good light is the lithium battery with an LED on the end. They can be turned on and off to save on the battery. They last a long time if a person remembers to turn them off after use.

* Inform others in your boat to watch for boats headed your way. Safe than sorry is the way to go on the St Croix!

*Keep your floor clear as much as possible.

* Wear your PFD at all times. When the BIG ONE bites, everyone will be moving around in the boat. The attention will not be on looking where they are going.

* Second anchor is advisable. Sturgeon do not like wind.

* Use rod holders, but Dtro taught me that holding a rod will get a person more fish. (bite detection)

* You will be checked by the DNR- plan on it.

* On windy days, attach your anchor to the side cleat of your boat. This will turn you slightly into the wind and you shouldn’t get the swinging in the stern of the boat (as much).

* Have camera, tape measure, pencil/paper and net ready.

* Have a fun time!!

Brian-what is the reason for the season dates?
Is this a spawning situation thereby concentrating fish?

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. I thought it would be a good idea if we all posted one tip about sturgeon fishing we have picked up over the years.

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That darn BK,always willing to go that extra mile for a fellow dark sider.

My ONE tip: If you have someone along that has never tied into a big powerfull fish,let them have first crack at a few.It can be as fun as catching it yourself.

Good question Mike!

They spawn in Juneish.

I asked an employee of the DNR that once and he didn’t have an answer except “that’s the time they picked”.
If I were to guess, it’s to link in with the WI season that’s been around for many years. Only a guess.

The other question I couldn’t get an answer for is the length minimum. Over 90% of all sturgeon over 50 inches are female and over 25 years old. The spawners. They only spawn every 2 to 4 years depending on who you talk to…so why are we allowed to take one fish of that size??

Wouldn’t it be better to take a 45 inch fish which would have more of a chance to be a male???

We are very fortunate, if my memory serves me Lakers are on the endangered list in 24 of the 27 states they are found in.

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My ONE tip: If you have someone along that has never tied into a big powerfull fish,let them have first crack at a few.It can be as fun as catching it yourself.

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I like that idea.

I would in fact buy a tag to keep one if the limit was lower. That way a bunch of us could at least try it once in our lives. I agree it seems foolish for 60″ min. I’m not really intereted in killing one that size.

Scale down the gear slightly for the St Croix. I use my channel cat gear

Ditch the rod holders

Fish right below the boat

Crawlers for numbers of fish Shad or fatheads for the big ones

Use electronics to locate the bait

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Scale down the gear slightly for the St Croix. I use my channel cat gear

Ditch the rod holders

Fish right below the boat

Crawlers for numbers of fish Shad or fatheads for the big ones

Use electronics to locate the bait

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How do you catch shad? I’d like to give a try but not sure where to get it at, all the shad you see swimming around is so small.

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Scale down the gear slightly for the St Croix. I use my channel cat gear

Ditch the rod holders

Fish right below the boat

Crawlers for numbers of fish Shad or fatheads for the big ones

Use electronics to locate the bait

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How do you catch shad? I’d like to give a try but not sure where to get it at, all the shad you see swimming around is so small.

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Finding Shad is getting harder and harder to do. Before the castnet law went into effect it was rather easy to gather up a bunch of them. In fact some guys were kind enough to sell you 50 bags (still can’t believe I bought 600 ) Those were the days.

With the new law (no castnet), you need to find a spot where you can use a dip net and or use a seine. Tough to come by for sure. I know it is possible to buy frozen shad online and have it shipped to you in dry ice. For anyone that will spending a lot of time out there, it might be a worthwhile investment to order some up. I might actually do that myself.

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With the new law (no castnet),

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Old law, just no one knew it was there…including some CO’s.

Anyone use frozen smelt?

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With the new law (no castnet),

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Old law, just no one knew it was there…including some CO’s.

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Tomaito/Tomahto

Sorry let me clarify myself….

“Old law that nobody could interpret correctly so until the point in which the State clarified it, castnets were thrown. Now that the law is clearly defined, other means to gather bait must be used”

Just toss it in the heaping junk pile of “stupid” game laws we have in the book that cater to Walleye/Musky/Bass fisherman.

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Anyone use frozen smelt?

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The way I understand it with the new VHS regs this is not legal…

Unless they are “prepared” somehow – salted down or such…..

I’ve tried smelt. Always went back to sucker/fatheads/worms and shad. To be fair, I haven’t used it a lot, just enough not to have confidence in it.

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With the new VHS regs this is not legal…

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Those would be a WI reg?

Yep Brian….I cannot remember where I read this.. but it came up when I inquired about using them for northerns on tip-ups.
Did MN set up any VHS rules for the boundary waters?

I’m not aware of any. I’m sure Dtro will chime in..in a moment with his white tomato.

Actually there are some VHS oriented rules in place for MN as well. I think the trout guys are a bit upset because they cannot transport smelt from Superior and use them up north. I don’t think I would chance using them on the St Croix with all the rules they have in place there. Especially when there are plenty of other good alternatives.

Seriously Brian? I got your White Tomato right here.

Have a good Sturgeon season everyone see ya on the water or chat with ya elsewhere.

Black Rods and Shovelnose rule….

I’m out.

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Seriously Brian? I got your White Tomato right here.

Have a good Sturgeon season everyone see ya on the water or chat with ya elsewhere.

Black Rods and Shovelnose rule….

I’m out.

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Nobody told me I needed knee boots to wade thru the crap in this thread

As far as I’m concerned there are no Sturgeon in the St.Croix. Been there a bunch of times in the past few years, with some very good fisherman too, and still don’t have a St. Croix sturg. to my name

Tony,

Report from 2005<<

Just like any fish, they aren’t “on” all the time. Pick a calm afternoon or evening. There’s fish there with your name on it.

So, I see lots about technique, bait etc… What should a person look for in terms of location? Specific to the Croix. Deep water? Shelfs above/below holes? Not looking for coordinates, but there must be some method to the madness when it comes to location on the croix.

If that’s not incentive to get over there, I don’t know what is

Thanks BK

I have had my best luck above and below holes/drops into deep water. I anchor about halfway up the drop off. But then again I have caught them in relatively shallow water flats fishing for walleyes too. Bottom line, try a spot for about 20-30 minutes, if your not getting bit, move. Bring a buddy along and let him sit in the front of the boat so he can haul the anchor for you.

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Scale down the gear slightly for the St Croix. I use my channel cat gear

Ditch the rod holders

Fish right below the boat

Crawlers for numbers of fish Shad or fatheads for the big ones

Use electronics to locate the bait

---

How do you catch shad? I’d like to give a try but not sure where to get it at, all the shad you see swimming around is so small.

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Finding Shad is getting harder and harder to do. Before the castnet law went into effect it was rather easy to gather up a bunch of them. In fact some guys were kind enough to sell you 50 bags (still can’t believe I bought 600 ) Those were the days.

With the new law (no castnet), you need to find a spot where you can use a dip net and or use a seine. Tough to come by for sure. I know it is possible to buy frozen shad online and have it shipped to you in dry ice. For anyone that will spending a lot of time out there, it might be a worthwhile investment to order some up. I might actually do that myself.

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I say way get a group together and do a group order of fresh frozen shad. Anyone up for it?

Tony, I forgot one more important ingredient…

Take your mother along.

Many places like Brad described will hold good fish. Don’t over look neck down areas and the community hole that’s basicly a flat in 30 fow. Sometimes the shallower edges are good (12 fow) other times it’s the depths.

You definitely need to find the shad first. But some pods can be massive. I like finding isolated pods of shad or ones broken away from the pack.

I’ve tried smelt for channels and at best it has been no better than sucker or fatheads. I think my nephew tried smelt 2 years back. He didn’t out fish anyone, so to me it is easier getting fresh sucker and cut as you go.

I am surrounded by jumping lake sturgeon all summer on Lake Wissota. Had one (a 4-footer, easy) bonk his head on the bow of my boat a couple weeks ago….I thought he was coming in, for sure.

Once the FLW championship is over, I’m going to relax by chasing some dinosaurs.

My question to the experts is….how deep is deep?

If I planned to fish in areas that these fish are constantly jumping, deep would be 20-22 feet, with lots of 14-16 and some shallow stuff in the 6-10 foot range.

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My question to the experts is….how deep is deep?

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Easy answer is that it’s all relative. If I’m in a section of water that I know hold sturgeon, I look for the deepest water in the area. On the Rainy River, that might be a slight dip to 22′ when the surrounding water is 20′. On the Croix, it might be 45′.

Of course, that’s not the only place they can be caught. Like was mentioned, if you haven’t gotten bit in 30 minutes or so, move.

Excellent advice coming from a long time Sturgeon lover. See avatar.