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District 6 - Two Harbors CO Sean Williams (Ely #1) reports he’s investigated several complaints of ATV traffic on grant-in-aid snowmobile trails. ATV riders are reminded that many portions of the trails cross private property and all GIA snowmobile trails are closed to ATV use regardless of snow conditions. Violations included angling without a license in possession and possessing an illegal-length northern pike.
CO Brent Ihnen (Ely #2) spent the week patrolling his station for fishing and ATV activity. Ihnen also responded to an injured-animal concern.
CO Thomas Wahlstrom (Grand Marais) checked anglers on area lakes and monitored ATV riders. Enforcement action was taken for multiple angling violations.
CO Hudson Ledeen (Grand Marais #2) spent time patrolling area lakes for angling activity. Success has slowed, but lake travel remains in great shape. Ledeen and CO Anderson assisted with a snowmobile safety class at Cook County Junior High School. Enforcement action was taken for unattended lines, no license in possession, expired ATV registration, no required ATV safety certificate, and littering.
CO Anthony Bermel (Babbitt) attended training, assisted on a house fire, and checked anglers and recreational vehicles. Enforcement action taken for no helmet on juvenile ATV operators and an illegal- length northern pike. Extreme caution should be used as several very large swaths of open water appeared on Birch Lake on Feb. 24.
CO Trent Anderson (Tofte) attended annual training and focused on angling enforcement for the week. Time was spent answering questions about the area and assisting local agencies. Area trails are still not ridable due to the lack of snow. Various angling violations were encountered.
District 5 - Eveleth
CO Darrin Kittelson (International Falls #1) reports ATV activity has increased over the past week as the snow is all but gone, however the forecast is calling for more snow. The annual awards and training event was attended at Camp Ripley. People are still reminded that the designated snowmobile trails are off-limits to ATVs and the ice conditions are very questionable, so please use caution.
CO John Slatinski IV (Ray) attended training at Camp Ripley. Equipment maintenance issues were tended to. Anglers were contacted on area waterways, with moderate success reported. Large ice ridges have again formed at various locations. Forest roads and trails were monitored as daytime temperatures and sunshine starts to soften the surface.
CO Troy Fondie (Orr) monitored area lakes and checked angling activities. Area forest roads were checked for ATV activity. Local streams were monitored for trapping activity. Fondie continued work on equipment prep for storage. Administrative tasks were completed and training was attended.
CO Sean Cannon (Cook) spent time this week checking anglers and monitoring area forest roads. Time was also spent at Camp Ripley for training. High winds over the weekend have rapidly changed ice conditions on Lake Vermilion, with ice heaves and open water appearing where there was solid ice the rest of the season. Cannon responded to a report of a Class 2 ATV going through the ice. Everyone made it out fine, albeit wet and cold, and assistance was rendered. There were rumors of others going through in other areas of the lake as well. If venturing out on the lake please exercise extreme caution.
CO Aaron Larson (Tower) spent time primarily checking anglers in his station. Ice conditions remained fairly good through the weekend. Anglers were finding mixed bags of walleyes, perch, crappies, and tullibee. Larson spent most of his time of Lake Vermilion and on the trout lakes in his station. Violations were related to ATV registration, angling licenses, and state park permits.
CO Marc Johnson (Hibbing) primarily worked ATV and angling activity. In addition, time was spent at Camp Ripley attending training and maintaining station equipment. Anglers continued to find little success on local lakes and recreational activity as a whole remained limited.
CO Shane Zavodnik (Virginia) spent time attending the annual awards and training event at Camp Ripley during the week. Zavodnik also attended the funeral of Jim Crawford, the founder of Minnesota’s Law Enforcement Memorial Association. CO Duke Broughten (Aurora) spent the week monitoring fishing and ATV activity. Lake ice has deteriorated in some areas. Anglers reported limited success. Anglers are reminded to check ice shelter removal dates but due to warmer weather it may be necessary to remove them early.
Broughten also fielded calls regarding ATV trails and injured animals.
Aviation Section
CO Pilot Jason Jensen (Brainerd) attended a training session at Camp Ripley as well as a Mississippi Flyway meeting to learn more about waterfowl survey techniques. CO Pilot Tim Gray (Bemidji) attended in-service training and flew two new conservation officers over their stations for a bird’s-eye view.
CO Pilot Bob Geving (Mankato) attended the annual awards ceremony/training days at Camp Ripley. Geving also worked on training tasks. CO Pilot Charles Scott (Grand Rapids) attended yearly training at Camp Ripley. He compiled required information for FAA field approval documents and continued work on helicopter maintenance research.
NR Pilot Gracie Zeller (Brainerd) attended the annual Enforcement training and worked on assigned tasks.
NR Pilot Brad Maas (Brainerd) worked on helicopter maintenance information and attended annual Division training at Camp Ripley. He also completed administrative tasks.
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 1-800-366-8917 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!
Extreme caution should be used as several very large swaths of open water appeared on Birch Lake on
Feb. 24.
