Veteran Sturgeon Spearing Retreat - Stockbridge, Wisconsin

03/08/2026

02/08/2026

😂🇺🇸🙌

01/23/2026

As the deep freeze continues and temperatures plummet, some people are venturing onto frozen lakes. That includes the state's largest inland lake, Winnebago.

01/22/2026

Keep up the great work, Pipe fishing club! For those of you who aren’t familiar Pipe Wisconsin is usually where we welcome our Veteran Sturgeon Spearing guests, the first weekend of Sturgeon sparing, which is coming up very soon! Ice is looking great and we can’t express how much we appreciate all of the volunteers who make sure that safety is our number one priority

Together we heal

10/31/2025

Last call, folks!

Anyone looking to participate in the 2026 sturgeon spearing season on Lake Winnebago must buy their license by Oct. 31. That’s this Friday.

Those of you who have been awarded an Upriver Lakes tag have until the end of the 2026 spearing season to purchase an Upriver Lakes sturgeon spearing license. The season starts on Feb. 14, 2026, and will run for a maximum of 16 days or until the predetermined harvest caps are met.

Licenses can be purchased through Go Wild or at any license sales location: https://gowild.wi.gov/

Photo Credit: Norris Ingbretson

10/31/2025

Did you get your Sturgeon tag??

10/07/2025

07/19/2025

🇺🇸 In Loving Memory of Veteran Larry Hagens 🇺🇸

House in the Woods is heartbroken to share the passing of a beloved member of our family, Larry Hagens — a proud Veteran, loyal friend, and one of the kindest souls to ever walk among us.

"Lucky Larry" as we lovingly called him, was a part of history, attending the very first House in the Woods Veteran Sturgeon Spearing Retreat on Lake Winnebago in Wisconsin. From that moment forward, he brought not only his humor and heart, but a deep passion for service and connection that touched every life around him.

Because of Larry’s unwavering support and love for his fellow brothers and sisters in arms, our annual Veteran Sturgeon Spearing Retreat will now be held in his honor and his name. His legacy of generosity, camaraderie, and love will live on in every moment shared on the ice.

He will be greatly missed by all who had the honor of knowing him and calling him friend.
Forever missed, but never forgotten.

We love you Larry.

**A Celebration of Life will be held Sunday, 7/27 12:30 p.m. at the American Legion in Appleton, Wisconsin. 3220 W. College Avenue, Appleton, Wisconsin** All are welcome to gather and honor Larry.

TOGETHER WE HEAL 💚

02/20/2025

What do fish and trees have in common?

Answer: We can tell their age in the same way – by their rings!

There are a few ways to figure out the age of a fish. Fish have calcified structures such as the hard parts of their pectoral fins (fin rays) or even their ear bones (otoliths). These structures continue to grow as the fish grows, creating new layers, or rings, with each passing year.

Trees have a very similar process, putting down new growth, or rings, with each passing year. Each ring represents one year of the tree’s life, giving us a quick and easy way to age a tree. Fisheries managers use these same principles to age fish. We simply can take a slice of either the fin ray or otolith and count the rings to find a fish's age.

This method works well for most fish as the average fish only lives to about 10 years old, maybe 20 years for some older species. But because lake sturgeon live so long, they pose their own problems when it comes to aging.

Lake sturgeon also create these annual rings, but with a species that can live as long as a lake sturgeon, it is like counting the rings on a 100-year-old tree that has the diameter of a quarter. At some point, those rings are just too close together to try to distinguish, making the standard aging techniques ineffective for lake sturgeon.

The fish featured in this photo is only 13 years old. Can you imagine how close together these rings would be on a fish that's four or five times that old?? Learn more about the ways we age these fish in our Feb. 14 Sturgeon Season Update: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/WIDNR/bulletins/3d27066

02/20/2025