New Forum - Who is from Wisconsin?

[Whopperhead]

95cm is good for Lake Michigan, 75cm is ideal for most Wisconsin Waters. Get a 5mm Open Cell Interior Wetsuit!! Most important piece to staying warm in Wisconsin. Also get a pair of 5mm Gloves and socks. You WILL need a Dive Float or Buoy with a FLAG. I convert my floats with a 2' x 3' Dive Flag. I don't want there to be any question as to where I am - from Boaters.

Kenosha is a Great area for spearing. I love Lake Michigan!!!! June 16th is the start of the Perch season and they are like footballs!! They taste delicious!!! We can shoot Rough fish and Pan fish here in Wisconsin. But there are lots of "If's, And's or But's" so get a "Netting and Spearing" Regulations. I posted one in PDF form on this site. Pan fish are very tasty (Perch, Crappie and Bluegills/Sunfish) But there are many other fish that you can eat as well.

There are a lot of people to dive with in Wisconsin! Especially between Milwaukee and Chicago on the Lake Michigan Coast. South East Wisconsin has some of the best spearing lakes in Wisconsin.

Feel free to ask as many questions as you would like - I also have a page on Facebook - "Wisconsin Speargun Hunters"

Look forward to diving with you.

 

[SaipanSkinDiver]

Thanks for the quick reply! Are there dive shops in the area or will I need to order my gear from the internet exclusively? One more thing I thought of. I usually dive with an OMER Alien mirrored lens mask. It's perfect for the water here, but I'm worried that it will be too dark for the murkier lake waters. What's your recommendation, or do you think that mine will be fine? Is lake MI one of the better spots or should I look into some of the inland lakes as well? Also, do you typically dive from the shore or from a boat? Are you allowed to just show up at a park along the lake and jump right in? We have basically 0 regulations here in Saipan, so it's going to take some getting used to. I'll be sure to read the "Netting and Spearing" regulations once I get my hands on it.

Thanks!

PS. Are all the fish as dumb as they look in your youtube videos?

 

[Whopperhead]

PS. Are all the fish as dumb as they look in your youtube videos?

LOL- no just the ones we can't shoot. rofl

really, it depends on many factors. Some are sitting there because they are guarding eggs or there are fish that we can not shoot and are not afraid of us. Usually the fish we WANT to shoot- take off or are very tricky to shoot. Lake Michigan is a great lake for Carp, Rock Bass, Perch and a bunch of other fish you can't shoot. Lake Michigan will have some of the clearest water you will dive in - in Wisconsin. But usually when it's super clear- it's super cold (40 degrees). It's a very weird lake and very dependant on the weather.

Your mask should be fine- if anything it might help if the fish can see themselves in the mirror of your lens.

There are a few SCUBA shops in the Milwaukee area- SOME know a little bit about Freediving- I try to buy most of my gear from dive shops- Aquatic Adventures in Milwaukee has a worker very familiar with Freediving- he may be able to help you. His name is REASON and that may be his Deeperblue name also. but I buy mostly Online. Like Austins dive Shop in Miami, Hammerhead Spearguns, Mako, I mostly try to avoid solely Internet stores like Leisure Pro- I try to support the smaller shops. Recently I bought some new gear from WATERMAN DEPOT- they recently started carrying Freediving gear.

90% of our spearing is from Shore. Mostly look for public entries, usually boat launches. but stay out of the way of boats. They always have the "right of way" or so they think. Follow the regs and carry your fishing license on you at all times. All you need to spear in Wisconsin is regular fishing license.

 

[SaipanSkinDiver]

Hey again,

Well I arrived here in WI a few days ago and it is frigid! I can't believe how cold it still is here. I can't even imagine getting in the water at the moment, but I'm sure that I'll get acclimated within a few weeks and be ready and rearing to get out. Can anyone give me some advice, (specific details would be appreciated) on where to go in Kenosha and Racine. I know a lot of people go from the shore, so I drove down to the beach today and looked around a bit. Saw some spots that looked promising, but really I have no idea. Are there wrecks or structure out there? First things first I gotta get a crazy thick wet-suit, but any advice would be great too so I can start thinking and planning. Thanks!

 

[Whopperhead]

this is a great spot to go in Kenosha: [ame="https://maps.google.com/?ll=42.588746,-87.81018&spn=0.012907,0.027874&t=h&z=16"]Google Maps[/ame]

The Breakwall out there is great for fish. Also, if just jump in and head south along the rocks, they hold all kinds of fish. there is parking at that circular dive on the south side of the channel.

Wetsuit: get a 5mm open cell interior. I recommend this site- ------------------- Cold Water Wetsuits | Nautilus Spearfishing – Miami Dive Shop | Page 2

These are nice suits and priced good. try to find some 5mm or 4mm socks. You will need this gear especially if you are diving Lake Michigan. it can get warm in the 70's and the next day can be in the 40's. But is an Awesome lake when it's clear.

Lake Michigan hold a LOT of wrecks. I know there are several up by Milwaukee, easily accessible by shore. I'll see if I can locate the website with the locations.

 

[SaipanSkinDiver]

Dude, you're the best! I hope we can dive together sometime. This is exactly what I was looking for, I'm pretty sure I drove past this spot earlier. How deep is this? I usually wear 5 lbs, but that was in salt water with a thin wetsuit fishing at about 60-80 ft. I'm assuming this will be much shallower than that and with a thick suit I'll probably need more weight. My guns are in the mail right now, so I'm thinking of just picking up a suit and a pole spear to get started and I figure if it's only 20-35 ft I won't even need my long fins. What do you think?

 

[Whopperhead]

You will probably need about 16 lbs with a 5mm suit. and about 8-12lbs with a 3mm. The depth on the break wall is about 20-25 feet. The perch are kind of all over the breakwall, but the mass majority are on the points. mostly the point closest to the channel. careful crossing the channel, boat come flying through there and it's a long shot for swimming. for this reason alone, I recommend long fins. I just always use long fins.

 

[SaipanSkinDiver]

So my spearguns finally came in the mail and I took them out yesterday. The visibility was pretty bad, 6 ft or so, and the water was freezing but I still had fun spearing these carp. What am I supposed to do with them now? Any ideas? What does everyone else do with these guys?

 

[Whopperhead]

Hey - sorry for the delayed response. I usually throw them in the Garbage. I use to use them as feritlizer but no longer have a place to dispose of them. I don't like tossing them in the garbage, so really I rarely shoot them anymore. I'm mostly just about Panfish these days- but If I do see a big Hog swimming by - I will poke a hole in it! Just doing my part