Hello, my name is Joel "Boog" Ballweg and I am a certified, confirmed fish-a-holic.
I grew up, went to school and fished the waters around Sauk Prairie, Wisconsin for the past 40 years.
As a kid, I remember Dad taking me and my brothers fishing. Many times we used nothing more than a cane pole and a few worms or minnows as bait.
Some of our favorite spots were along the shorelines of the Wisconsin River and Lake Wisconsin.
Two of my older brothers, Chuck and Dennis, were also fish-a-holics. After graduating from college, they both bought boats and allowed me to tag along with them whenever possible.
Ballweg's Guide Service, LLC
Specializing in Walleyes, Saugers & Crappies
on Lake Wisconsin & Wisconsin River
Walleyes were far and away their favorite species to catch. We would be on the river as soon as the ice would allow each spring. Their two favorite places to fish during late winter and early spring were the tailwaters of the Prairie du Sac dam and the tailwaters of the Wisconsin Dells dam. Fishing for walleyes and saugers was very good back then. Clothing however left much to be desired. In between putting a fish on the stringer and baiting jigs with fathead minnows, cotton gloved hands were frequently roasted over a coffee can filled with white hot charcoal briquettes. Yep, those were the good old days alright!
Both of them spent time guiding as well. Chuck guided mostly in northern Wisconsin around the Minocqua area. Dennis guided right here on Lake Wisconsin from 1977 thru 1980. Careers and family pulled them away from Wisconsin though and eventually, I had to buy my own boat and start my own adventures.
My younger brother Pete and I pulled that boat all over the place to fish.
The Mississippi River was one of our favorite destinations for walleyes in the spring and the fall.
The Lake Michigan waters of Door County provided excellent fishing for Brown Trout in the spring and Pike in the fall.
Lake Mendota was always good for a perch outing in June and early July.
Canada was not too far to pull a boat either. But we always ended up right back here on the Wisconsin River. Either on a stretch of river below the dams or on Lake Wisconsin. We sure had alot of fun chasing around with that boat.
Up until the last few years, it was always kind of a competitive thing for us to see who could catch the most or the biggest fish. That kind of changed when I met my wife Nancy. She loves to fish too but without the extensive background of my usual fishing partners, it became necessary for me to do some serious tutoring if I wanted to see her catch fish as well. And I did want to see her catch fish.
After awhile, I began to realize that I was doing alot of smiling every time she caught a nice fish. And so was she. I was getting a bigger kick out of seeing her catch a nice fish than if I had caught it myself.
Becoming a fishing guide was the only thing I thought about for quite awhile after that. I wanted to show more people how to catch fish and see the smile on their face when they did.
So I applied for and received a guiding license from the State of Wisconsin.
Shortly after, we bought a 2003 18' Lund with a double counsel and powered by a 175hp Envinrude. A T8 Yamaha kicker motor takes care of the trolling and a 24 volt, 70lb thrust Minn Kota bow mount electric motor does a great job of controlling the boat when fishing presentations need to be slowed down. A Lowrance LCX-27C full color fish locator and GPS + waas mapping capabilities was added to help find the fish.
Walleye fishing has come a long way since those early days. Back then about the best thing a kid could hope for was a new fishing pole, a hand full of pinky's and a bucket full of minnows.
Looks like the good old days haven't gone anywhere after all!
This page was last updated: February 5, 2012
Nancy with a personal best 26-1/2" Lake Wisconsin Walleye
5.5lb Lake Wisconsin Sauger
About Lake Wisconsin
Here is some back ground information on this beautiful body of water and diverse fishery.
The Dam in Prairie du Sac which forms Lake Wisconsin was built in 1909 and flooded in 1919. Lake Wisconsin is considered to be a eutrophic impoundment and covers approximately 9000 surface acres. It is the furthest down stream reservoir on the Wisconsin River system.
This stretch of the river, which runs from Wisconsin Dells dam on the upper end, down to Prairie du Sac on the lower end, is the last reservoir on the river before it's confluence into the Mississippi River. The lake itself is approximately 10 miles long and it's roughly another 20 miles from the upper end of Lake Wisconsin to the dam in Wisconsin Dells.
It has highly stained waters and a maximum depth of 47'.
Generally, it is believed that water flows thru this entire system in four days.
Although the river is the main source of water for Lake Wisconsin, there are several streams and creeks that feed it as well. Rowan Creek feeds into Whalens Grade, Prentice Creek feeds into Stoners Bay and Manley Creek flows into the north end of Gallus Slough.
Main lake bottom composition consist mostly of sand, rock and gravel but back bays may have a considerable amount of muck. Stumps are abundant in the wider expanse above the RR Bridge near Merrimac and near the mouths of both Weigands Bay and Moon Valley. And though less abundant, they also exist near the mouths of other bays as well.
Vegetation is limited throughout most of the main lake but coontail, pondweed, rushes, and water lilies can be found in most of the back bays.
Lake Wisconsin offers excellent fishing for walleye, sauger, crappie, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, bluegills and white bass.
Excellent growth rates indicate a superior forage base which consists of a large population of gizzard shad. Blunt nose minnows and shiners are also common.
Because of this, a walleye can grow 17-18" long in just three years. Saugers can grow 13-15" and crappies can grow to a length of 10" during that same three year time span.
Both walleye and sauger had excellent spawning success in the mid 1990's. That spawning success, combined with the new bag limits that went into effect on April 1, 2002 and the abundance of forage species for these fish to feed on, has turned Lake Wisconsin into one of the State's premier walleye and sauger fisheries. Currently fisherman are allowed to keep a total of five walleyes and saugers combined between 15-20" long. All fish between 20-28" long must be returned to the lake. One fish over 28" long may be kept but must be included in your daily total of five per person.
Walleyes in the 10-13lb range are caught every year and saugers over 20 inches long are common.
Many fisherman come to chase the abundant crappie which can easily reach 15" or larger.
All walleye, sauger, crappie, bluegill, muskie, pike, largemouth and smallmouth bass reproduce naturally in Lake Wisconsin.
Muskie and hybrid muskie have both been stocked in this lake numerous times and though not abundant, it is not uncommon to catch one either.
Northern pike are also present and though not abundant, they will show up on the end of your line from time to time.
