Wisconsin

Jarrid Houston column: Wisconsin fishing opener down, Minnesota is coming

Published

8 months ago

May 9, 2024

Jarrid Houston column: Wisconsin fishing opener down, Minnesota is coming

The “open” sign flashed brightly for the state of Wisconsin’s annual fishing opener last Saturday, and now it is Minnesota’s turn.

We think things are shaping up to be a good one. Despite an early ice-out this spring, water temps have been able to stay on the cooler side. A mix of cool days, as well as off-and-on recent rain showers, have kept water temperatures from spiking. That is good news for anglers because that should make for a longer-than-usual bite timeline. Still, this is fishing, and any avid angler knows you can be humbled.

With that said, let’s all be optimistic and hope for the best fishing opener ever. As of now, the weather looks to be decent, so let’s keep our fingers crossed for that. For the Wisconsin opener, we had to fish in the cold rain, which wasn’t ideal.

Let’s dig into the next big holiday we call the great Minnesota fishing opener:

Lake Superior anglers have had on and off days depending on what Mother Nature has provided. We can report that boat marinas are filling up with vessels, and boat traffic is picking up a tad. From Ashland to the North Shore, we will start to see more and more big water boats out trolling. Best fishing continues to be trolling shallow running stick baits in a few different colors that can change daily.

This week, it sounds like bright orange was best for getting some coho bites. Fish locations are not as concentrated as we were seeing a month ago, but that is typical as many spring rituals are in motion. We are just coming off a pretty decent smelt haul, and humans were not the only ones harvesting some tasty morsels. Best depths targeted for coho have been in and around the 80–120-foot areas, but similar to changing bait colors, these can vary often too.

For the charter captains about to take to the waters, have a great season, and we look forward to hearing what’s happening out there.

Stream fishing continues to be going decent for some anglers. The streams from Two Harbors up the North Shore are seeing a few good fish being caught. Fan-casting fly rods with float indicators over fly lures continue to get a few bites. Water levels have risen, and flow is going pretty decent at this time. We expect to see some canoe and kayakers taking to the streams as we move farther into May.

The St. Louis River Estuary will be one of the busiest places for walleye anglers for the next several weeks. We expect to see many anglers launching boats throughout the system. Water temperatures, as mentioned, are still on the cooler side, hovering around the 50-degree mark, which should be good. The big girls should be heading back toward Lake Superior, but as usual, some lucky anglers will have a hook-up with these big, beautiful fish.

Please make the right decision on harvesting. I have often heard people say old walleyes can’t reproduce, and that is absolutely inaccurate. And, I promise, if you take a fish out of the water, it will 100% have no chance to reproduce. Keeping a few fish is OK, just make sure to know the rules, and please, please only keep fish of the juvenile type — say under 18 inches.

For success on the lower river and harbor, I would look toward the channel edges and work a slow bait. Crankbaits can be ideal, but spring fishing is usually better suited with live bait rigs. Lindy rigs, spinner rigs, dead sticks, or one of my favorites, “corking” (bobber fishing), will all be good tactics. Your fishing electronics will certainly show a bunch of fish, but not all will be active. Once a big group of boats with several baits start infiltrating fish schools, they can turn off pretty fast. The point is, don’t be afraid to find areas of the river with less traffic.

On to the inland lake fishing bite. Let’s start with Wisconsin, as we have been on somewhat of a bite to start the season. Fishing started slow on opening weekend but has picked up a little since. Water temperatures are just over 50 degrees in many areas we have been fishing. Walleyes have seemed to be better morning, and later evening biters for whatever reason. Usually, during the early part of May, we can get them pretty consistently throughout the day, but not this year as yet. Pike have been easy picking working weed edges around the 10-foot depths. Some beefy fish can be tackled this time of year, so if the walleye bite is a little “off,” don’t be afraid to cast out some stick baits or spinner baits toward shorelines.

For panfish enthusiasts, we are just getting rolling on some nice crappie bites near deeper breaks. Wind-blown shorelines, cork and split shot, with a crappie minnow, is a good recipe for some crappie fishing. The sunfish will be going in the shallow, warm water soft bottom areas. Using a bobber and a worm chunk is a good bet.

For Minnesota opening morning, if you are looking for walleyes, don’t overlook the big flats near substrate transition areas. Rock to sand is hard to beat. We look forward to hearing of some success from all of you. Man, is it great to be back to fishing! Everyone have a safe and enjoyable week, and we will most definitely see you on the water.

Jarrid Houston of South Range is a fishing guide ( houstonsguideservice.com ) on Minnesota and Wisconsin inland waters, the St. Louis River and, in winter, on Lake Superior.

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Wisconsin

Wisconsin Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 results for Jan. 6, 2025

Published

2 hours ago

January 7, 2025

Press Room

Wisconsin Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 results for Jan. 6, 2025

The Wisconsin Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Jan. 6, 2025, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from Jan. 6 drawing

17-34-46-66-67, Powerball: 14, Power Play: 2

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from Jan. 6 drawing

Midday: 2-2-4

Evening: 4-5-9

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from Jan. 6 drawing

Midday: 4-1-1-0

Evening: 4-9-0-3

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning All or Nothing numbers from Jan. 6 drawing

Midday: 05-06-07-09-10-13-14-15-16-17-18

Evening: 02-04-06-08-09-12-13-15-17-18-19

Check All or Nothing payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Badger 5 numbers from Jan. 6 drawing

03-05-06-16-31

Check Badger 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning SuperCash numbers from Jan. 6 drawing

03-13-16-17-21-24, Doubler: N

Check SuperCash payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

Prizes up to $599: Can be claimed at any Wisconsin Lottery retailer.
Prizes from $600 to $199,999: Can be claimed in person at a Lottery Office. By mail, send the signed ticket and a completed claim form available on the Wisconsin Lottery claim page to: Prizes, PO Box 777 Madison, WI 53774.
Prizes of $200,000 or more: Must be claimed in person at the Madison Lottery office. Call the Lottery office prior to your visit: 608-261-4916.

Can Wisconsin lottery winners remain anonymous?

No, according to the Wisconsin Lottery. Due to the state’s open records laws, the lottery must, upon request, release the name and city of the winner. Other information about the winner is released only with the winner’s consent.

When are the Wisconsin Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
Super Cash: 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 3 (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 3 (Evening): 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 4 (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 4 (Evening): 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
All or Nothing (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
All or Nothing (Evening): 9 p.m. CT daily.
Megabucks: 9:00 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
Badger 5: 9:00 p.m. CT daily.

Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Wisconsin editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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Wisconsin

Packers, Sargento Foods continue ‘Touchdowns for Hunger’ during playoffs for Wisconsin Hunger Relief

Published

10 hours ago

January 6, 2025

Press Room

Packers, Sargento Foods continue ‘Touchdowns for Hunger’ during playoffs for Wisconsin Hunger Relief

Following another successful season of Touchdowns for Hunger resulting in a donation of $104,000, Sargento Foods Inc. will continue donating $2,000 for every Packers touchdown during the NFL playoffs. The Packers ended the regular season with 52 touchdowns.

As the Official Cheese of the Green Bay Packers, Sargento donates $2,000 toward hunger relief in Wisconsin for every touchdown the Packers score during the regular season. These funds are shared by **Paul’s Pantry** in Green Bay and **Hunger Task Force** in Milwaukee who are on the front lines of hunger relief.

“‘Touchdowns for Hunger’ demonstrates our pride for the Packers and our community,” said Sargento Chairman & CEO Louie Gentine. “We’re proud to continue our donation in the postseason and cheering for Packers touchdowns to help feed families across Wisconsin.”

Since it began in 2002, Touchdowns for Hunger has raised more than $1.9 million to help alleviate hunger in Wisconsin and has provided more than one million meals for those in need.

With over 2,500 employees and net sales of nearly $1.8 billion, Sargento Foods is a family-owned company that has been a leader in cheese for more than 70 years. Founded in 1953 in Plymouth, Wisconsin, Sargento is proud to be the company that successfully introduced America to pre-packaged sliced and shredded natural cheeses and cheese blends. Today, Sargento Foods is still based in Wisconsin, where they manufacture and market amazing shredded, sliced and snack natural cheese products, as well as ingredients. Company leadership lives to serve local communities and employees, whom they refer to as the Sargento Family. www.sargento.com.

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Wisconsin

Wisconsin's first Black-founded alcohol distributorship adds new whiskey line

Published

18 hours ago

January 6, 2025

Press Room

Wisconsin's first Black-founded alcohol distributorship adds new whiskey line

Mequon-based Big League Distributing has announced that it will distribute Illinois-made Alexander James Whiskey expressions – a brand created by former Division I college athlete Jesse Steward Jr. – in Wisconsin.

Steward – who was a sprinter and jumper at Purdue University and Lewis University (as well as being an operations supervisor at O’Hare International Airport, which is probably a challenging sport of its own!) – has a bourbon and a rye so far.

Each is distilled by Two Eagles Distillery in Mount Prospect, Illinois, aged four years in charred American white oak barrels and bottled at 90 proof.

“Big League Distributing and Alexander James are a great match,” says Steward, who launched his whiskey brand on his 30th birthday in October 2021. “The BLD team understands that behind every high-quality product is a meaningful story. And those stories are key ingredients.

“Alexander James was born of my family’s rich history passed down to me from my father, his father and so on, each story told over a glass of whiskey. BLD also made history in its founding. Wisconsin is a state of discerning diners and drinkers, and we are confident that Alexander James will resonate.”

The deal is the first to distribute Steward’s whiskeys outside Illinois.

But, I admit I’ve buried the lead here, because Big League Distributing (BLD), founded in March by former professional baseball player Larry Hisle Jr. and journalist James H. Burnett III, appears to be Wisconsin’s first-ever Black-owned alcohol distributor.

“BLD, to the best of our knowledge and that of alcohol industry veterans we consulted, is the first Black-founded, minority-owned alcohol distributorship in Wisconsin,” Hisle says, noting that four years of planning went into the 2024 launch.

“Black-founded because two African American men created the company before bringing in our third partner, an Indian American man (Krishan Mehta), whose father was a successful first-generation immigrant from India.”

In addition to Steward’s bourbon and rye, BLD distributes more than a dozen wine varietals from two different California-based wineries and a New York-Jersey Metro-area importer. Among them are Baker Family Wines, which is co-owned by former LMB star Dusty Baker, and Robert Randolph Prosecco, a label created by Grammy-nominated guitarist Robert Randolph.

“We had a great tequila brand on board as well, but a catastrophic production issue iced that arrangement,” Hisle says. “It has been a roller coaster ride – but thankfully far more ups than downs – as we’ve grown our business over the past five years.

“We’ve learned a great deal, including the solution to the chicken-or-egg question of which to put the most energy into at first/up front: scoring more ‘carriers’ or building up a variety of product offerings and inventory to ensure stability and lower the risk of supply line interruptions.”

What they learned? Focus on the latter and the former will come.

“Now that we’ve got a healthy variety, we’re making an aggressive push to get into more venues,” he says. “We hear from restaurant and tavern owners every week requesting meetings to either taste or coordinate the purchase of our products. This game is a marathon and not a sprint. And we’re in a good place, a great place.”

To help further expand its business, BLD will host an industry tasting event later this month for owners, managers and buyers at local restaurants, taverns, retail outlets and entertainment venues that sell alcoholic beverages.

Of course, the Alexander James Whiskey bourbon and rye will be featured.

“We’re especially excited to work with Jesse Steward, founder of Alexander James, for several reasons,” Hisle says. “His distillery produces quality whiskeys. To date, his products are the closest to Wisconsin that we carry, geographically. So, the logistics will be easier.

“And there’s a personal element. We want people to work with us because we offer great products and service. But we recognize that we’ve made history with our entree into the wholesale alcohol business. To be executives on the distribution side of this industry is extremely rare for people of color, especially Black Americans. It’s less rare but still something of a novelty to see ‘us’ on the production side. So we feel a bond with Jesse as both his operation and ours push to rise and thrive in this industry.”

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