Conservation Officer Tales

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) attended training at Camp Ripley.

CO Mary Manning (Hovland) patrolled area forest roads and checked Lake Superior tributaries. She conducted minnow dealer checks, checked on area lake service providers and followed up on litter and birch pole theft cases. Lots of questions have been fielded regarding iceout. The recent snowfall and forecasted snow for the area will not improve the prospect of open water for the fishing opener.

CO Kylan Hill (Tofte) reports testifying in court for a DUI arrest Hill had this past fall.

CO John Slatinski IV (Ray) completed follow up with a site visit on a wetland restoration order. Animal-related complaints were heard and responded to. Assistance was provided with vehicles in the ditch after the last snow squall that came through the area. Now is a good time to remove bird feeders and clean up any remaining seed and waste. This simple act can help reduce the chances of conflicts with springtime emerging animals, namely black bears but also other hungry critters.

CO Bill Landmark (Pelican Rapids) reports ice fishing on area lakes is officially over for the year. Rain has made any ice unstable and soft. Landmark followed up with local soil and water conservation districts on ongoing wetland violations. Reports of incidentally caught otters and an injured eagle were also handled.

CO Thomas Sutherland (Grand Rapids) worked lateseason ice angling with ice conditions deteriorating quickly. One individual fell through the edge of the ice up to their waist right in front of Sutherland – a reminder that caution needs to be used. Sutherland also worked littering cases where garbage was dumped at public landings.

CO Kipp Duncan (Duluth East) spent three days at Camp Ripley training during the week. Field work in the Duluth area consisted of fishing enforcement along the North Shore. Some anglers are fishing in the rivers closer to Duluth and at river mouths farther up the shore. Inland lakes are still locked solid with ice and people are still ice fishing. ATV-related complaints were investigated and other complaints received included dogs chasing deer, turkey hunting trespass and road hunting for turkeys.

CO Garrett Thomas (Eagan) spent time checking anglers on local lakes and trout streams. Fishing success in the area has been very good with the warming water. In one instance, a shore angler saw Thomas checking others and attempted to set his bucket of fish and gear amongst the trees and walk away. He was located, cited for fishing without a license, and the fish were seized/released. In another instance, an angler was found to be in possession of an overlimit of crappies, claiming he was just putting them all in his bucket and was planning to count and release the extras “later.” He was cited and the eight extra crappies were seized and released.

CO Bret Grundmeier (Hinckley) spent most of the week at Camp Ripley completing annual training. Calls were taken about black bears being seen leaving their hibernation areas and roaming around. There were also a couple reports of car vs. bear vehicle accidents. Fishing activity was found on the open waters of rivers and streams, and a few spring turkey hunters were checked.

CO Jim Guida (Brainerd East) worked turkey hunting activity and patrolled for illegal fires and prohibited allterrain vehicle operations. Guida and a Crow Wing County Deputy addressed two juveniles and their parents for illegally operating off-highway motorcycles in the public road right-of-way. Guida also trained at Camp Ripley this week and completed equipment maintenance and inspections.