Glen Schmitt Talks No-Wake Restrictions and Bird Numbers

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) -- A very wet month of July has led to water levels on many area lakes being extremely high, prompting county sheriffs to impose "No-Wake restrictions.

WAKE RESTRICTIONS

Glen Schmitt with Outdoor News says boaters need to be mindful of people's shorelines and respect the rules.  He says if you're inside 300 feet of shore on a "No-Wake" lake, you are allowed to go only as fast as you need to steer the watercraft. Three hundred feet is the length of a football field.

Schmitt says he's heard of complaints that boaters are not adhering to the restrictions.  When outside of the No-Wake zone, boaters are allowed to hit the gas. Schmitt says water patrols are out there keeping an eye out for violators.

UPLAND BIRD POPULATIONS

Heavy spring rains can have an effect on upland bird populations because that's when most broods are hatching.

PHEASANTS

Schmitt says he has some concern about the pheasant populations because June was a wet month, and that could impact the birds as they hatched. He says we'll have to wait and see when the DNR does its August roadside survey.

TURKEYS

The reports are good on wild turkeys, with some bigger birds that hatched earlier and some smaller birds that would have hatched more recently.

GEESE/DUCKS

Schmitt says goose and duck populations look good. He's seeing a pretty decent amount of ducks toward the north, with a number of different species being spotted. The DNR will be coming out with those surveys as well.

RUFFED GROUSE

The DNR has released spring counts of ruffed grouse drumming and indicates the grouse drums were down slightly. The number of drums per stop went from 2.3 per stop to 1.8 per stop. However, Schmitt says that's not a real worry as the 2.3 drums last year were the highest of the 10-year average.  Schmitt thinks the ruffed grouse season should be a good one.

For my complete conversation with Glen Schmitt of Outdoor News, listen below.