DNR Recommends Patience Before Ice Fishing

ST. CLOUD -- A conservation officer with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is asking you to be patient and avoid venturing onto the ice this holiday weekend.

Lieutenant Mike Martin says even though we are making ice with these colder temperatures, your life isn't worth a chance to catch a fish.

Martin says the problem is the varying ice conditions on our lakes and ponds...

Part of the problem we have in our local area is the number of our lakes that are impoundments or are parts of river systems.  Little Rock Lake, the Horseshoe Chain, Briggs, and Julia...all have either strong river systems going through them, are impoundments or are both.  So, the ice thickness can vary from skim ice to more than 2 or 3 inches.

Martin says it's tempting to go ice fishing now, but another week or two of below-freezing temperatures should go a long way in making it safer to walk on.

He also recommends keeping children away from holding ponds and other bodies of water during this holiday weekend.