SHIOCTON, WI – Like many other things, the sturgeon spawn watch will have to be done virtually in Shiocton.
COVID-19 concerns will not stop the spawn from happening, but it will stop the onlookers from getting to see it in person at Bamboo Bend.
“This is a serious issue and we just want to keep everybody healthy.”
Kevin Conradt, President of Shadows on the Wolf, said they originally wanted to keep it going with some limitations, but it was decided Wednesday night to shut it all down.
“We put barricades up, and if people start walking down there, they are going to be told to leave.”
Amber George, Police Chief of the Shiocton Police Department says she expects people to follow those restrictions.
“If people would decide to come, we are going to educate them, but they could get trespassing charges since it is a Village park and it is closed.”
Shadows on the Wolf will be closing down their facilities and parking as well.
“We are going to shut our parking lot down, there will be no convenience for going to the bathroom, we are shutting it all down.”
Conradt said the decision was not made lightly because it is a big boost for the Village.
“It brings a lot of money to our community, and now we are telling them to stay home,” Conradt said. “I guess that is because we don’t want this to spread any further than it already is.”
“Unfortunately just stay away, everyone’s health is more important than seeing them this year,” said Chief George.
There was a thought to allow people to stop by as long as they follow social distancing regulations, but Chief George said that would be too difficult to enforce.
“It would be very hard for us to follow social distancing and for us to have to have staff down there to help maintain that, we would be putting our staff at risk,” she said. “The fish will be there next year.”
George added that once again, at this point, the water levels are impacting the clarity as well.
“The water is up past the rocks and at this point, you can’t even see them anyway because it is completely overflowing at this point.”
All is not lost, Condradt said people will be able to see the underwater activity from home.
“We are still going to be putting those cameras in the water so people will still be able to view sturgeon activity on the website.”
The site is http://wolfrivercam.com/
While it may not be the same as seeing them in person, Condradt said you will still get to see a rare site and now that it is taking place close to home and like everything else, it is important to put a positive spin on it and have a little patience.
“They will be back again next year, it has been like that for thousands of years, they will be back.”
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