With nearly 500,000 firearms deer hunters in the state, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources encourages hunters to purchase their licenses early to avoid long lines and any potential system issues associated with the high sales volume.
The 2017 Minnesota firearms deer season begins a half-hour before sunrise on Saturday, Nov. 4.
“Buying a deer license early gives you more time to pack that tater tot hot dish for deer camp, and do everything else associated with your deer hunting tradition,” said Steve Michaels, DNR licensing program director. “Every year people do wait until the last minute and last year we sold more than 140,000 licenses the Thursday and Friday before opener.”
Deer licenses can be purchased at DNR license agents across Minnesota, by phone at 888-665-4236 or online at mndnr.gov/buyalicense. There are additional fees for telephone and Internet transactions. Deer licenses and tags ordered by phone and Internet take three to five business days to arrive, so hunters who choose these options should allow enough time for delivery. Hunters must have a valid deer license in their possession when hunting deer.
Hunters need to be familiar with deer hunting regulations, which are available at any DNR license agent or online at mndnr.gov/regulations/hunting. Hunting questions should be directed to the DNR Information Center at 651-296-6157 or 888-646-6367, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays.
Leave a Reply