Updated Deer Harvest Numbers in Minnesota Following 2nd Weekend

The 2nd weekend of the firearms deer hunting season completed Sunday.  Glen Schmitt from Outdoor News joined me on WJON.  He says approximately 112,000 deer have been shot during the firearms season so far.  Schmitt says those numbers are up approximately 5% compared to last year.  He says the northeast region in the state saw the biggest increase at 10%.  Schmitt says 55,100 deer were shot in the first weekend.  He says participation was high during the 2nd weekend and license sales were about identical to last year at about 390,000.

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Schmitt says with all the deer hunting seasons about 143,000 deer have been harvested.  In a couple zones in northern Minnesota they still have one more firearms deer hunting weekend.  Muzzleloader deer hunting starts November 30 and ends December 15 and archery deer hunting continues in the state through December 31.

The duck hunting season in Minnesota is closed in the northern zone but continues in the central and southern Minnesota zones through November 24.  Schmitt feels the cooler weather coming in could lead to a good weekend of new birds coming into Central Minnesota.  He cautions duck hunters to be careful in and out of boats with the colder weather and cold water.  There have been accidents involving duck hunters in Minnesota this season where hunters needed to be rescued.

Schmitt says pheasant numbers in the state are still good but participation is down.  He says that is likely due to deer hunting.  Schmitt indicates pheasant hunters can still find success in Central Minnesota, western Stearns County, and in western and southern Minnesota.

Fall fishing is coming to an end with the weather cooling off.  Schmitt says he's had a lot of success finding walleye this fall.  He explains ice fishing in Minnesota could actually start on northern lakes as early as Thanksgiving weekend.  Schmitt doesn't expect ice conditions to warrant fishing in Central Minnesota by Thanksgiving weekend but if the weather continues to cool, possibly in early December.

If you'd like to listen to my conversation with Glen Schmitt, it is available below.