Fishing_Content Page_Spawning egg taking facilities

Spawning (egg taking) facilities

Fishing Wisconsin

Fish spawning (egg-taking) plays a vital role in maintaining the Great Lakes sport fishery for coho and chinook salmon, steelhead (migratory rainbow trout) and some brown trout. In early spring, for example, the Department of Natural Resources stocks steelhead into tributaries of Lake Michigan and Lake Superior, where they imprint on the scent of the water before moving into the lakes. When the steelhead are adults, they return to those familiar streams to spawn.

Because the streams get too warm for the young trout or salmon to survive, the DNR spawns the adults, hatches the eggs, and rears them at state fish hatcheries.

When the fish are six inches long, they are ready to smolt and trade in their large dark spots for a silvery sheen. At that time, they are released into tributary streams to imprint and the cycle begins again.

Egg-taking facilities: an eggs-traordinary experience

See how it all begins... Attend the Besadny Anadromous Fish Facility and Root River Steelhead Facility open houses.

You can see egg-taking procedures at three state egg-taking sites:

Strawberry Creek Spawning Facility

  • Strawberry Creek webpage
  • Species: Chinook salmon
  • Location: On Strawberry Avenue off of County Highway U, east of Sturgeon Bay and south of the ship canal in Door County
  • Dates: Temporarily closed
  • Hours: Temporarily closed.
  • Telephone: 920-388-1025

C.D. Besadny Anadromous Fish Facility

  • C.D. Besadny webpage
  • Species: Steelhead and brown trout, Coho and chinook salmon, spotted muskellunge and lake sturgeon
  • Location: 3884 Ransom Moore Lane - off of County Highway F, west of Kewaunee, on the west bank of the Kewaunee River, Kewaunee County
  • Dates: Temporarily closed
  • Hours: Temporarily closed
  • Telephone: (920) 388-1025
  • Note: Call ahead for tour information (minimum 10 people).

Root River Steelhead Facility

  • Root River Steelhead Facility webpage
  • Species: Steelhead (rainbow) trout, Coho and chinook salmon
  • Location: 2200 Domanik Drive, Racine, WI (Located within the City of Racine’s Lincoln Park)
  • Dates: Operated seasonally in spring and fall.
  • Hours: Viewing window open during daylight hours while the facility is being operated in the spring and fall (Viewing window hours are subject to change without notice).
  • Contact: (414) 750-8382
  • Note: Please call for more information on visiting, or use our online self-guided tour of the facility. In-person group tours are available during operation by appointment; please call to make a reservation.