Although the Cook County News-Herald knows that the majority of sportsmen and women are law-abiding folks, there are a few that run afoul of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Conservation Officers. Periodically, the DNR provides a report of some of the miscreants the Conservation Officers (CO) have encountered. The News-Herald shares these stories as a reminder to all to be safe and to follow the rules!
CO Thomas Wahlstrom (Grand Marais) checked anglers and boating activity on Lake Superior and inland lakes over the busy holiday weekend. He followed up on boating complaints, monitored ATV activity and responded to wildlife-related complaints. Enforcement action was taken for angling, ATV and watercraft safety violations.
CO Mary Manning (Hovland) worked a very hot and dry holiday week and weekend. Numerous folks were advised of the extremely high fire danger and the use of fireworks, including many illegal ones. Many North Shore campgrounds are still closed and some campers did not check before travelling and were forced to move to disperse camping or share sites. Manning checked anglers and boaters and talked with many folks just trying to cool down in area lakes. She also checked ATV operators, assisted Cook County with a fire and with fireworks complaints, issued a road-killed deer permit and answered questions about lake access and trapping nuisance beavers.
CO Kylan Hill (Tofte) reports focusing on boat and water safety throughout the holiday weekend. The majority of the watercraft seen in the area were canoes, and PFD compliance was excellent with only a few outliers. Temperatures in the 90s, paired with little to no wind, kept most recreational motorboat activity minimal during the day. With no recent precipitation, water levels on a few area lakes have dropped and operators stated they had to be a little more careful. Hill took a report from a group of kayakers who observed a person shoot and kill two geese on Lake Superior just east of Lutsen. Hill would appreciate any and all help from the public with identifying the shooter, as Hill wasn’t able to locate the shooter the day of the incident. Hill stopped a 14 year old on an ATV after Hill observed them drive a very long wheelie in the lane of traffic on a state highway in the wrong direction of travel. Contact was made with the parent and it was determined the juvenile took the ATV without the parent’s permission. The parent in question had one arm in a sling and Hill learned they were injured in an ATV incident the week before. A discussion about ATV safety ensued.
CO Shane Osborne (Evansville) checked anglers, boaters, and ATV riders. Several aqua thrusters and weedrollers were inspected over the weekend. Almost all of them were in violation. No lights after sunset and not enough life jackets were the main violations of the weekend.
CO Randy Posner (Staples) worked on fishing enforcement this past week. The sunfish, crappies and bass have been the most productive for anglers on area lakes. He also worked on boating enforcement. The Independence Day holiday brought out a large number of boaters. Complaints of PWCs chasing loons and careless operation of wakeboard boats received some enforcement time. He assisted the neighboring CO in Brainerd. They checked boats for safety equipment and navigation light violations. Some other violations observed were no fishing license and expired registration. Complaints of bears damaging bird feeders were fielded.
CO John Slatinski IV (Ray) reports “hot” and “no fish” were common responses when speaking with people on the water this past week. The mayfly hatch was the scapegoat for anglers struggling to find active walleyes. Various boating and angling violations were observed and addressed. One individual decided to cut a tree down at a day-use beach area because it was obstructing their view, much to the dismay of other beachgoers.
CO Jacob Willis (Brookston) saw heavy boating activity over the holiday weekend. Upon responding to a complaint on a small inland lake along with St. Louis County deputies, Willis found a pontoon boat with 14 people on board. Not only was this three people over capacity for the vessel, but there was only one PFD on board. Add the alcohol consumption by those on board and it was a recipe for tragedy. Thankfully, officers got the boat safely back to the dock and enforcement action was taken against the boat operator. Other enforcement action taken throughout the station included operating an unlicensed watercraft, insufficient number of PFDs, failure to display registration, no angling license, and no trout stamp.
CO Jim Guida (Brainerd East) worked a busy Fourth of July holiday on the water. A TIP call was received about an individual spearing game fish off a fishing pier. Upon arrival, Guida located the suspect and seized a spear gun and a dip net that were used illegally to harvest numerous largemouth bass and bluegills. The individual was charged and assessed restitution for the fish killed. Guida worked a nationwide effort called Operation Dry Water, during which numerous boating violations were detected and addressed. Due to the very warm weather, numerous boaters expressed appreciation for the safe boating efforts and offered cold water and electrolyte drinks.
CO Tom Hemker (Winona) reports a busy boating week on the river. A swimmer drowned on the Mississippi River in Winona. Hemker received many nuisance wild animal complaints including deer, rattlesnakes, milk snakes, a bobcat, coyote and eagle. A person who was wanting to return to Illinois watched a rattlesnake crawl up into the undercarriage of her car. After harassing it with water to move to a reachable location, Hemker was able to remove it from the engine compartment and relocate it.
Contact local DNR Conservation Officers to report violations or ask questions:
Thomas Wahlstrom
218-370-0244
Kylan Hill
218-387-4393
Mary Manning
218-387-5285
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