Ice Fishing Wraps Up As Anglers Turn To Open Water

Ice fishing is done in Central Minnesota for the season.  Glen Schmitt from Outdoor News joined me on WJON.  He says he got stuck trying to take his ATV on an area lake last week so he's moving on from ice fishing and will now focus on open water fishing.  He says if people would still like to ice fish this season, you would have to go north of Bemidji.

Open Water

Schmitt plans to turn his focus to crappies and open water fishing.  He says most area lakes have a good supply of crappies and sunfish and he'll be pursuing crappies as soon as the weather allows.

Bears in Central MN

This is the time of year bears wake up after months of hibernation.  Schmitt says Central Minnesota doesn't have a big bear population but the area has more bears than most people know.  Schmitt says due to a lack of natural forest foods, bears often look for food elsewhere which could include bird feeders, and/or dumpsters.   The DNR suggestions include hiding bird feeders, keep garbage cans inside and know where your dog food is.

Moose In Minnesota

The Minnesota moose population is on the increase.  The numbers released by the Minnesota DNR indicated the state has 4,470 moose which is up 11% from the year before.  Minnesota had more than 8,000 moose as recently as 2009.  Schmitt says the reason for the decline from 2009 to where we are now include brain worm, parasites, climate change, and habitat.  He says moose calves are also sometimes killed by wolves and/or bears.  Schmitt says older moose can also be targets.

A Moose Hunt?

Schmitt is uncertain if we'll ever see a moose hunting season in the state and he's not sure what the population number would have to be to make that possible.

If you'd like to listen to my conversation with Glen Schmitt, click below.