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District 6 - Two Harbors
CO Sean Williams (Ely #1) reports assisting St. Louis County Sheriff’s Deputies and Rescue Squad search for two missing canoeists near Curtain FallsintheBWCA.Weatherconditions varied and several heavy rain and windstorms hampered search efforts. He also fielded calls about wolves in the Ely area.
CO Brent Ihnen (Ely #2) worked his station this week focusing on fishing, boating, and AIS activity. Additional time was spent checking ATV operators.
CO Thomas Wahlstrom (Grand Marais) checked anglers, boaters, and ATV riders during the week. The officer assisted with instruction at a FAS field day in Cook County. All the students passed and had a great time. Enforcement action was taken for angling, boating and ATV violations.
CO Hudson Ledeen (Grand Marais #2) spent the week focusing on angling and boating activities. Nuisance bears continue to be a problem and folks are reminded to keep their grills, trash, and bird feeders in a secure location. Enforcement action was taken for numerous angling violations.
CO Anthony Bermel (Babbitt) Took enforcement action for insufficient PFDs and transporting fish without a patch of skin. A couple injury crashes were responded to.
District 5 - Eveleth area
CO Darrin Kittelson (Int’l Falls #1) reports the walleye fishing on Rainy Lake has been sporadic, however the pike fishermen are having success. Enforcement action for the week were mainly license violations. People are reminded again to leave fawns alone, give them space and mom will return and tend to them.
CO Curtis Simonson (Int’l Falls #2) reports spending time this past week working area lakes and rivers. Nuisance and miscellaneous wildlife complaints were handled along with patrolling for ATV activity.
CO John Slatinski IV (Ray) With summer weather on everyone’s mind, the number of activities happening in the area are abundant. Spring wild animal babies being born has resulted in calls from concerned citizens when young are found without adult animals nearby. This is not out of the norm and the parent will come back. Anglers have been fighting windy conditions to be successful. Preparation meetings for the new electronic licensing system and academy training were attended. Blackbearshavemuddledthe situation at local businesses and campgrounds while waiting for natural food sources to become more palatable.
CO Troy Fondie (Orr) reports monitoring area forest roads for ATV activity. Public water access sites were visited over the week. Local Lakes were checked for fishing and boating activity. Equipment work is on-going. Administrative tasks continue.
CO Sean Cannon (Cook) spent time checking anglers, with mixed success seen throughout the week. Opening of muskie season brought many anglers out chasing after the elusive fish, with numerous anglers reporting catching and releasing decent fish. ATV activity was monitored, and a trapping investigation was worked on. Violations encountered throughout the week included angling without a license, no license in possession, not having required marine safety equipment on board and leaving traps out past the close of season.
CO Aaron Larson (Tower) worked primarily angling and ATV enforcement. Larson spent time checking local lakes for angling activity and focused on the Eagles Nest lakes. He checked for illegal ATV activity around Tower and Soudan and problem spots related to ATVs on snowmobile trails. Larson also responded to a bear complaint on an island on Lake Vermilion.
CO Shane Zavodnik (Virginia) Time was spent fielding a nuisance bear complaint within city limits and giving technical advice to residents about a sick fox. Additional time was spent checking anglers in the BWCA.
CO Duke Broughten (Aurora) spent the week monitoring fishing, boating, and ATV activity. Fishermen reported limited success this week. ATV activity declined this week. Garbage and bird feeders continue to attract bears into neighborhoods. It’s not uncommon to see a bear come through town. CO Broughten also investigated a wetland violation.
Aviation Section
CO Pilot Bob Geving (Mankato) flew WCA and public waters photo missions. Geving also worked on administrative tasks.
CO Pilot Tim Gray (Bemidji) flew fisheries survey flights and a wood duck telemetry flight. Also took the District 2 Enforcement intern for a flight looking to confirm information of a possible violation.
CO Pilot Charles Scott (Grand Rapids) completed a requested shoreline flight. CO Pilot Scott also finished shorebird photo flights and completed currency training.
NR Pilot Brad Maas (Brainerd) completed a fixed wing training flight andattendedaviationwebinars.Healso worked on special tooling for the fish stocking tank and completed administrative tasks.
NR Pilot Gracie Zeller (Brainerd) workedoncreatingchecklistsandother documents for the unit’s electronic flight bag program. She continued work on modernizing the helicopter training syllabus and flew a training flight. Vehicle maintenance was also performed.
Enforcement Education
Please check the DNR website at www.mndnr.gov for a current class listing of all DNR Enforcement Education Courses and instructor training sessions.
If you missed a fall class and are over 18, check online for the online course information. (It’s also at www. mndnr.gov.)
Please check the DNR website www. mndnr.gov for a current class listing of all DNR Enforcement Youth and Adult Snowmobile Safety Courses and instructor training sessions.
Please direct questions to 1-800-3668917 or 1-888-MINNDNR.
Reminder: Anyone born after December 31, 1979 cannot purchase a license to hunt in Minnesota without first taking a DNR Safety Training Course and receiving a certificate. In addition, many states have even more stringent mandatory Hunter Education requirements. Check before you go!
Reminder: Any resident born after December 31, 1976, who operates a snowmobileinMinnesotamustpossess a snowmobile certificate. Two options are available to complete certification. Ages 11 and older can take the online course and hands-on day or attend the traditional youth course. Those 16 or older can take the online course.
Reminder: Anyone born after July 1, 1987, who operates an ATV on public lands and waters in Minnesota must successfully complete the ATV Safety Training online course. People under age 16 must complete the ATV online course and riding component before riding on public lands. Please direct questions to 1-800-366-8917 or 1-888-MINNDNR.
SCHEDULED INSTRUCTOR TRAINING SESSIONS If you are 18 or older and would like to become an instructor for Snowmobile Safety, ATV Safety, Firearms Safety, Trail Ambassador or one of the Advanced Hunterprograms,contactyour local conservation officer or regional safety training officer. Instructor clinics are scheduled throughout the state and are listed on the DNR website.
See Also: http://www.dnr.state. mn.us/safety/instructors/training. html
