DNR Report: Bear hunters battled heat, bugs

Sep. 7—CO Darrin Kittelson (International Falls #1) continued field training COC Jahn. Time was spent at a regional meeting, at the point of entry, and checking bear hunters, early waterfowl hunters and anglers. Enforcement action was taken for anglers illegally transporting fish from Canada and for a Class 2 ATV on a state highway. Enforcement action was also taken for a group with several fishing violations, including an overlimit and two fish within the protected slot.

CO Curtis Simonson (International Falls #2) reports working the bear opener this past weekend. He also patrolled area forest roads for ATV activity. Time was also spent working the Rainy River checking sturgeon anglers. Enforcement action was taken for operating ATVs on state highways.

CO John Slatinski IV (Ray) fielded and responded to animal-related complaints. Slatinski worked a security detail at the Minnesota State Fair. Despite the warm weather, bear hunters battled the heat and bugs in search of a suitable bruin for harvest. Some success was observed, along with lack of activity on some baits as the chokecherries have ripened and are plentiful in pockets. Boating activity over the holiday weekend was steady, as expected. ATV use has started to pick up and several groups were observed out on the trails.

CO Troy Fondie (Orr) reports monitoring holiday weekend activities. Fondie fielded numerous concerns on the lack of teal/geese and ducks in general. Few waterfowl hunters were encountered in the field with temps in the 90s. Bear hunting appeared way down from previous years. Wild rice harvest continues. ATVs were abundant, with numerous violations encountered.

CO Aaron Larson (Tower) spent most of his time preparing and working the openers of the bear and teal/early goose season. Time was spent checking bear hunters and waterfowl hunters. Violations included no life jackets on a boat, wanton waste, taking waterfowl out of season, open-water shooting for waterfowl, falsified identity information, failure to have waterfowl stamps, no bear sign, failure to mark a bear drum, non-biodegradable items in bear bait, and a non-resident establishing bear bait using drum. Larson checked and was aware of several successful bear hunters despite the hot weather over the weekend.

CO Marc Johnson (Hibbing) primarily worked ATV, big-game, and waterfowl-hunting activity. In addition, time was spent presenting at a firearms safety class in Hibbing and assisting the Itasca County Sheriff's Office on a boat fire. Bear hunters have reported seeing good numbers, but smaller-than-average size.

CO Shane Zavodnik (Virginia) reports a busy week working ATV patrol, investigating several trespass complaints, and checking early teal/goose hunters. Warm weather and low numbers of geese around the area made for a slow start to the early goose season. Teal hunters checked reported a tough weekend due to lack of birds and no wind. Zavodnik also handled a wolf-depredation complaint and took enforcement action regarding a number of OHV violations encountered.

CO Duke Broughten (Aurora) spent the week monitoring fishing, bear hunting, waterfowl hunting, and ATV activity. Hot weather limited hunting activity. Bear hunters reported moderate success. Teal and goose hunters reported limited success. ATV activity remained high. Broughten also fielded calls regarding trout regulations, trespass and ATV registration.

CO Sean Williams (Ely #1) reports a very hot opening weekend of bear hunting saw a surprising number of bears reported visiting baits. Success, however, had been difficult after several hunters reported missed shots. Violations included taking waterfowl from open water, taking waterfowl without a stamp, and taking waterfowl in a closed season.

CO Brent Ihnen (Ely #2) spent the week patrolling for fishing, boating and ATV activity. He also monitored bear- and waterfowl-hunting activity.

CO Thomas Wahlstrom (Grand Marais) worked the warm and busy holiday weekend checking bear hunters, anglers and ATV activity. The officer spent time in the BWCAW checking anglers. Enforcement action was taken for ATV, fishing and watercraft violations.

CO Hudson Ledeen (Grand Marais #2) spent the week patrolling the woods for bear hunters and the lakes for anglers. The holiday weekend brought large crowds of folks to the North Shore. Enforcement action was taken for no required helmet for youth on an ATV, angling with extra lines, no license in possession, and failure to affix a bear tag to the carcass.

CO Anthony Bermel (Babbitt) continued field training COC Ambroz. An extremely busy Labor Day weekend was worked for a wide array of enforcement activities including early teal and goose hunters, watercraft and anglers, ATVs, bear hunting and wild ricing. Enforcement action taken this week included an overlimit of walleyes, transportation of a loaded firearm in a motorboat, no special goose permit, bear bait sign violations, and numerous ATV and watercraft violations. An illegal bear bait is under investigation. Despite the extreme heat, bear hunters in the area were very successful.

CO Matt Miller (Silver Bay) checked bear hunters and early teal and goose hunters on the warmest weekend of the summer. Bear hunters found some success on opening night before temperatures rose too far. A couple of young duck hunters were educated on targeting non-season species, and the need for proper licenses and lifejackets. ATV use was moderate, with trails in solid dry condition. Enforcement action was taken for waterfowl and angling violations.

CO Kylan Hill (Tofte) reports heavy activity throughout the week and into the holiday weekend. Bear hunters were checked, and success was minimal. ATVs are starting to appear more frequently, and compliance was OK. There was a surprisingly hot walleye bite on lakes in the Tofte area. Lake Superior was also worked, and Hill checked very few fish. Assistance was given to various sheriff's offices with medical and suspicious activity calls.

CO Don Murray (Two Harbors) worked a busy holiday weekend with a record-breaking heat wave. Water-related activity was high, as was ATV activity. Bear and early goose hunters didn't do as well with the warm weather. Wild rice harvesting is underway with some areas holding a good crop. Enforcement action was taken for ATV riding violations and licensing issues.

CO Vinny Brown (Northome) checked anglers, early teal hunters, and bear baiters. Assistance was given to surrounding counties with calls for service. Enforcement action was taken for taking fish without a fishing license, youth ATV helmet violations, ATV registration issues, and various bear bait violations. Despite temps in the 80s and 90s, bear baiters still saw a decent harvest for opening weekend.

CO Jayson Hansen (Bigfork) worked ATV riders, boaters, hunters and anglers. He patrolled campgrounds and trails. Numerous game and fish-related questions were answered. He also responded to wildlife-related complaints.

CO Mike Fairbanks (Deer River) checked anglers, monitored rice harvesting and worked the bear opener. Fairbanks and his K-9 partner Fennec also participated in K-9 demonstrations at the state fair.

CO Thomas Sutherland (Grand Rapids) worked a busy week with many new hunting seasons that began. Sutherland worked the early teal season opener, early goose and bear hunting opener. Sutherland took enforcement action for not having a federal waterfowl stamp and not having enough life jackets on board a watercraft. The bear season opener was slow for most hunters with a heavy mass of acorns dropping in the woods the past week and unseasonably warm temperatures.

CO Brian Holt (Grand Rapids) worked recreational vehicles and angling activity throughout the previous week. Time was also spent following up on public waters complaints. Holt worked a busy Labor Day weekend in the Grand Rapids area checking bear, goose and teal hunters. Enforcement activity involved hunting license and boating safety violations.

CO Taylor Hochstein (Hill City) focused patrol efforts on bear opener, early goose and teal season, boating, fishing and ATV activities. A slow start to bear season was reported by most hunters, and very few people were out waterfowl hunting due in part to the extremely warm weather.

CO Jake Willis (Brookston) saw heavy activity over the holiday weekend despite the heat. A trespassing complaint was followed up on and a complaint of someone unlawfully posting land on a right-of-way was handled. Willis also worked shifts at the Minnesota State Fair.

CO Andy Schmidt (Duluth West) continued the field training process with COC Saewert. Time was spent enforcing boat and water activity on Lake Superior. A citation was issued for no PFD. Anglers were checked on Fish Lake and Pike Lake. The main violation encountered was no PFDs. The officers continued working bear baiting and hunting activity this week. ATV enforcement action was taken for an operator with no safety certificate.

CO Kipp Duncan (Duluth East) and COC Aimee Hand attended a regional meeting this week. Potential bear baits were looked into. Shore anglers were checked earlier in the week prior to the extreme heat wave hitting for the holiday weekend. Anglers and hunters are reminded that they need to have their license in possession at all times when traveling to, from and while participating in their licensed activities. Duncan and Hand were lucky to find a 12-year-old who had shot a pretty large bear on opening night. The week was finished spending time on the boat checking boaters and anglers trying to stay cool and enjoy the long weekend.

CO Tony Elwell (Kettle River) assisted with security at the Minnesota State Fair for part of the week. ATV-complaint areas and trails were worked in correlation with baiting/opening of bear season. The officer also worked area lakes for boating and angling activity.

CO Mikeena Wehr (Willow River) worked the busy holiday weekend. Time was also spent this week following up on complaints and working the info booth at the state fair. Violations encountered included ATV, OHM, boating, personal watercraft, dispersed camping and open burning violations.

CO Ben Karon (Pine City) spent a few days at the Minnesota State Fair for security. He also worked on checking bear baits and hunters. Early waterfowl hunters were checked this weekend as well. There were some complaints of hunters taking the wrong species of ducks. Karon checked boaters and conducted ATV patrol in various areas of Pine County. Karon assisted with a medical emergency on Pokegama Lake.