Just as in years past, Wissota will start the season with a 2-walleye bag limit (and the customary 14-18″ protected slot with only one fish over the slot allowed in possession). For a full list of lakes in the Ceded Territory with reduced bag limits, check out this link.
Generally, Wissota’s limit moves up to 3 fish around the time of the Memorial Day holiday. I’ll keep everyone posted as to changes to the Wissota walleye bag limit.
ARgg 1 walleye on Yellow. I guess I will stay south this year.
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Wow with the amount of walleyes in that system that is just nuts. Let the fishermen harvest some of those fish. Those who fish walleyes on that lake know how many eyes there really are. That’s too bad.
As you are probably aware, it has to do with how many walleyes the Native Americans declare to spear, and how many are taken in the end. Once their numbers are in, and finalized the totals can increase. This year the first night, they only took 40 or so, the next night was 140+.
Any spearing this year????
Don’t think they hit Tainter either, don’t think they have ever hit Tainter since I have lived here. Too bad we keep sitting at these 3 fish limits—must be saving all those walleyes for the day the might come down and spear–would hate to have them show up and not have any to spear. Is there a size limit on spearing????? Any nightly limits on spearing?
Hummm, makes a guy wonder. 
Sure makes bragging about catching you limit easy.
Doc, the number of fish that may be speared is established by the permit that the spearers must have in possession, and is dictated by the quota for the lake as well as the number of spearers.
In terms of size, the size limit is 20″, except that one fish may be 20-24″ and one fish may be of any size.
For the full WI spearing regs, check out this link.
What is different this year is that the LdF are the spearers and not the Bad River like in years past. As of Monday, 453 fish have been harvested including a whopping 299 in one night. Most are reportedly males but there are females in the mix.
To give some perspective, the previous TOTAL harvest for one season by Bad River was 300 in 1995.
This year, 4 spearers are working the lake. If they hit a total of 1191, the 2 fish bag stays in place for the entire season. If they fall short, then the adjustment back to 3 will be considered and possibly re-instated.
LdF has been increasing it’s quotas and there’s quite a stir going on over in their reservation. Many people worried that lakes were going to end up 1 per for angling. LdF put a vote to the reservation whether or not to claim the entire safe harvest quota. It was narrowly defeated. This is scary stuff for sport anglers and the communities supported by it.
I’m sure the FLW will be real thrilled with a 2 bag limit for their September event. LOL!
The whole “safe harvest” thing is a joke because winter spearing is not counted. So the data is bad because an entire category in the population is excluded.
For example, look at Bone Lake and Muskies. I believe “Safe Harvest” for the lake is 29 muskies regardless of method. I have a picture showing 10 muskies on the ice from one afternoon and not one is counted against the safe harvest level!
Now, the LCO is holding spearing “tournaments” up in the Hayward area. Who here is comfortable with spearing as a competitive sport? Thankfully, there were not a lot of fish killed in that tournament but a 40# muskie paid the price. More money in a fish like that if it’s swimming and not hanging in some bar or office.
I think the tribes are pretty short sighted on the economics and long term commercial benefits. The casinos are hurting now, imagine what happens when no one wants to stay in the area because of low bag limits.
Personally, I respect the right of “tradition”. I understand that. I’ve read Satz’s “Chippewa Treaty Rights” a number of times. But in this day and age, you can’t act like you’re the only one that uses the resource. Not all traditions endure. True, angling takes more fish but only because there are more of us. Fact is, we are all in this together.
True that the treaties ensure their rights, what is not ensured is the subsidies and other entitlements that state and federal governments send their way. That can be changed. Gaming compacts can be changed. Not much use in a dead walleye when the walls are falling down.
If this continues, I see another wave of trouble coming. No one wants to see that.
Jon Olstadt
Thanks for the insights Jon.
Keep hoping for continued warm weather to bring the spawn to a close.
Back to the “normal” 3 fish bag with the customary slot as of May 22nd:
If you like eaters and a five fish limit with a 14-18″ slot fish the Chippewa River in any direction above or below Wissota. Its scary good how great the fishing is for Mr Walleye on either side of the dam… 
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