Fishing records come along rarely in Wisconsin.
It’s not for lack of effort. About 1.7 million anglers hit the waters of the Badger State each year to wet a line or fish by other means. And everyone loves big fish.
But history has shown to set a record you basically have to be extremely lucky or highly skilled and dedicated.
The Department of Natural Resources keeps fish records in three categories: fish caught by hook-and-line and kept; fish caught by hook-and-line and released alive; and fish caught by alternate methods, including by hand, speargun and bow and arrow.
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Karl Scheidegger is a DNR fisheries biologist who compiles the state’s fishing records.
His data show from 2018 through 2025 across all categories an average of 19.75 fish records were set annually.
So yes, if you want to rely on luck, your odds of setting a Wisconsin fish record are about as long as winning the Powerball.
But anglers are nothing if not optimists.
It’s one of my favorite parts of fishing, thinking on the bright side at the start of each outing and the “just one more cast” at the end.
And even if you don’t catch one bigger than has ever been landed in state history, you can set your sights on a personal best.
Of course those of us who also like to catch, keep and eat Wisconsin fish often prefer smaller specimens for the table. When it comes to fishing, the benefits come in many ways.
But today let’s stick with the topic of record-sized fish. What did 2025 show?
Sixteen fish records were set in Wisconsin last year, including by three in the hook-and-line kept category, five in live release and eight in alternate method.
The hook-and-line kept category is what most people would consider the traditional list. It’s also the most expansive and includes 87 species.
There are records for inland trout and Great Lakes trout, for example, as well as hybrids and even aquatic invasive species. Leading the list in number are eight entries for trout, seven for bass, four for sucker, four for redhorse and three for bullhead.
Some of the records are very old, including the walleye mark of 18 pounds set in 1933 on High Lake in Vilas County.
But 2025 brought in three fresh ones, starting with a 4.06-pound long-nose sucker caught April 12 on the Menominee River in Marinette County by Christopher Janacek of Phillips.
It was followed by a 2.86-pound yellow bass caught April 22 on Lake Mendota in Dane County by Vairin Meesouk of Dane. And on Sept. 17 Dusti Perkins of Baraboo set the shorthead redhorse mark with a 4.34-pound fish caught on the Wisconsin River in Sauk County.
In my view one of the primary benefits of the fish record program is increasing awareness of the diverse fish communities in Wisconsin. Suckers, redhorse, buffalo and burbot are prime examples of valuable native fish that deserve protection and currently have none.
In 2025, though, we have examples of two anglers who caught what many anglers would mistakenly call “trash fish.” Janacek and Perkins realized what they caught and got their catches certified as state records. Good on them.
The live release category has shown an uptick of interest in recent years after the DNR initiated it in 2017. The program taps into the catch-and-release ethic practiced by many anglers.
It requires a photo of the fish next to a measuring device, a photo of the angler with the fish and a simple application. There is no charge to apply or participate. It also relies on the honor system and asks that anglers practice good catch-and-release methods.
Only 12 of the 32 eligible fish species had an entry in the first two years of the program. As of 2025 all had been filled but tiger musky. I expect that to happen in 2026.
But in 2025 the standard muskellunge live release record was broken three times, all with fish caught on Green Bay.
The first was a 56-inch-long musky caught-and-released June 4 by Jake Van Remortel of Hazelhurst. It was topped Sept. 9 by a 56.5-incher caught by Greg Matzke of Florence. And the bar was then set higher with a 57-incher caught by Sam Becker of Mokena, Ill.
Although there are a few reports each year of a musky caught and released on Green Bay in the 57-inch range, it will be interesting to see how long Becker’s mark stands.
Other live release records set in 2025 were for yellow perch (16.75 inches caught on Green Bay by Lash Lemerond of Oneida), pumpkinseed (10.38 inches caught on Silver Lake in Washington County by Robert Schurrer of Cedarburg), shovelnose sturgeon (32.88 inches caught on the Chippewa River in Eau Claire County by Elsa Mattiaco-Running of Washington, DC) and brown trout (35 inches caught on Lake Michigan in Ozaukee County by Brandon Eifert of West Bend).
If you’ve done any fishing in Wisconsin, you know every live released record in 2025 was a very impressive fish.
And we need a different adjective to describe the hand-caught fish in the alternate record category. Also known as noodling, it basically involves reaching into a hole or under a bank and catching a fish by hand.
Nick Anderson of Neenah learned to noodle while in Texas for his medical residency. Last year was the first time he spent much time doing it in his home state and he did it in record fashion, breaking the flathead catfish mark three times. The biggest was a 54.85-pound flathead he caught Aug. 20 in the Wisconsin River in Wood County.
Anderson, who works as a pediatrician and is careful with his hands, said he got years of experience with knowledgeable noodlers in Texas and the method of hand-catching very large fish is really not as crazy as it might seem.
We’ll take him at his word. Not all species are eligible, but among the 39 alternate method Wisconsin fish records, his flathead is the only one taken by hand. All the others are by bow, spear or speargun.
In 2025 the other alternate method records set in the state were: a 1.85-pound brown bullhead taken with a speargun in Green Bay in Door County by Shawn Schmidt of Denmark; a 5-pound burbot taken with a speargun in Lake Michigan in Milwaukee County by James Weselowski of Franklin; a 44.35-pound bighead carp taken with a bow on the Wisconsin River in Sauk County by Payton Fandrich of Madison; a 12.68-pound quillback carpsucker taken with a bow on Petenwell Flowage in Adams County; and a 0.48-pound warmth taken with a speargun on Powers Lake in Kenosha County by Shawn Schmidt of Denmark.
The 2026 Wisconsin open water fishing season has started on many state waters and the general inland opener is May 2.
How many records will be set this year?
Get out there and give your luck – or use your skill – a try.
Take the optimistic, “one more cast” mentality with you.
And know this indisputable fact: record fish are swimming in Wisconsin’s waters.
Fishing licenses: Wisconsin residents and nonresidents age 16 and older must have a Wisconsin fishing license to fish in any waters of the state. An annual license costs $20 for residents age 18 and older and $7 for those ages 16 and 17. A $5 option is available for first-time buyers.
In addition, stamps are required to fish Great Lakes Salmon and Trout ($10) and Inland Trout ($10).
An annual non-resident fishing license is $55 for an individual or $70 for a family.
To buy a license, visit a sales outlet such as a sporting goods store or bait and tackle shop or purchase one online at gowild.wi.gov.
