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District 6 - Two Harbors CO Sean Williams (Ely #1) reports angling activity was high throughout the week and weekend, as people from all over the state and Midwest showed up to fish the area. Angling success was overall good, and a mixed bag of game fish was seen. Violations included angling without a license, taking fish with an extra line, and angling with unattended lines.
CO Brent Ihnen (Ely #2) spent most of his time this week checking anglers. He also patrolled for smallgame hunting and trapping activity.
CO Hudson Ledeen (Grand Marais #2) spent the week patrolling area lakes and trails. Anglers were reporting a slow bite, and few fish were seen caught. Ledeen wants to remind folks that snowmobile trails remain closed to ATV use. Enforcement action was taken for multiple angling violations and ATV violations. CO Anthony Bermel (Babbitt) reports low activity over the last week. A few anglers were checked chasing crappies, with moderate success for those who were willing to put in significant time. Court was attended for a case in Itasca County. Some success was noted for coyote hunters.
CO Trent Anderson (Tofte) focused on angling enforcement and equipment maintenance for the week. Time was spent updating station paperwork and equipment. Anglers were out enjoying the moderate temperatures and easy walking conditions. Violations encountered included operating an unregistered ATV, angling with extra lines, and various other angling violations.
District 5 - Eveleth
CO Darrin Kittelson (International Falls #1) reports his workload still is centering on ice fishing, snowmobiling, and ATV activity. The snowmobiling is pretty much limited to the lake surfaces and even that is not the best. Ice conditions still remain questionable, so please use caution when venturing out. Enforcement action was taken on snowmobile registration and display issues and loud exhaust. People are also reminded that just because snowmobile trails aren’t being maintained or used, that is illegal to operate ATVs on the designated snowmobile trails.
CO Curtis Simonson (International Falls #2) reports working area lakes and rivers this past week.
CO John Slatinski IV (Ray) reports that although the more seasonable weather has returned, ice conditions continue to make it more difficult to get around for anglers. Bare ice has caused both cooling issues on snowmobiles and slippery conditions on ATVs. Although a few anglers are still out on the ice, success has been inconsistent. Questions have been received on the status of snowmobile trails with lack of snow cover. ATV owners are wanting to use the snowmobile trails. It is not allowed, the snowmobile trails are not open for ATV use.
CO Troy Fondie (Orr) reports monitoring angling activities over the week with little angling noted. Area forest roads were checked, as were timber sales. Equipment work continues. Wildlife-related calls were handled.
CO Sean Cannon (Cook) spent the week checking ice anglers, monitoring trapping activity and checking area forest roads. Fishing remains slow and fewer anglers were encountered this week. Lakes remain bare, with no snow this week, and nothing in the forecast. Time was also spent investigating a stuck, abandoned vehicle on an area trail. CO Aaron Larson (Tower) worked primarily angling enforcement. Larson spent most of his time checking local lakes including Lake Vermilion and several backwoods lakes. He also spent time working in the BWCAW. Violations were related to shelter identification, ATV registration, and angling licenses.
CO Marc Johnson (Hibbing) primarily worked angling and ATV enforcement. In addition, time was spent training at Camp Ripley, attending meetings, and completing online training. Anglers continued to find limited success on local lakes, but colder weather improved ice conditions. Snowmobile trails continue to be without snow.
CO Shane Zavodnik (Virginia) spent time talking to and checking anglers, who were mostly in search of panfish and northern pike. Overall, everyone reported decent success throughout the week. The remaining time was spent preparing for Honor Guard details throughout the state.
CO Duke Broughten (Aurora) spent the week monitoring ATV and fishing activity. More anglers were encountered this week, but fishing success remained low. Multiple ATVs were encountered during the warmer weather. Almost all of the snow in the area has deteriorated. Ice hasn’t changed much. Thickness varies from 6 to 14 inches. Broughten gave a presentation to a snowmobile safety class. Broughten also investigated complaints of garbage dumping, illegally cutting birch poles, and ice shelter violations.
Aviation Section
CO Pilot Jason Jensen (Brainerd) reports flying a training mission and working on equipment maintenance.
CO Pilot Tim Gray (Bemidji) flew bear telemetry flights and a training flight.
CO Pilot Charles Scott (Grand Rapids) worked on manual updates. He transported an overhauled propeller to an aircraft for installation. He prepared flight lessons for a recurrent training flight.
CO Pilot Bob Geving (Mankato) flew a training flight with CO Pilot Jensen. Geving also attended to administrative and other training tasks.
NR Pilot Gracie Zeller (Brainerd) focused on helicopter maintenance record research and tracking. She attended a planning meeting for future projects and an informative webinar covering icing strategies for aviators. NR Pilot Brad Maas (Brainerd) attended a planning meeting for this year’s cattail spray project. He also worked on helicopter maintenance tracking, attended an aviation webinar, and completed vehicle maintenance.
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.)
Check the DNR website www.mndnr.gov for a current class listing of all DNR Enforcement Youth and Adult Snowmobile Safety Courses.
Angling activity was high throughout the week and weekend, as people from all over the state and Midwest showed up to fish the area
