District 6 - Two Harbors CO Sean Williams (Ely 1) reports: he saw extremely high snowmobile activity over the week and into the weekend. Trail conditions continue to be ok, but many areas are showing wear from a lack of recent significant snowfall. Violations included: excessive snowmobile speed, failure to transfer snowmobile registration, and fail to display current registration.
CO Brent Ihnen (Ely 2) spent most of the week patrolling his station checking anglers and snowmobile riders. Officer Ihnen also checked for fish house violations on area lakes. Additional time was spent patrolling for ATV operators.
CO Thomas Wahlstrom (Grand Marais) monitored snowmobile activity on area trails. Time was spent checking anglers on remote trout lakes. The officer also taught a snowmobile safety class with area Officers at the Cook County school.
COHudsonLedeen(Hovland) spent time patrolling snowmobiling and angling activities. There were a lot of snowmobilers from all over the country and even parts of Canada visiting the arrowhead region for good riding conditions. Fishing remains consistent for most anglers and even a few trophy caliber fish were seen on the ice. Enforcement action was taken for a variety of violations.
CO Anthony Bermel (Babbitt) worked primarily angling and snowmobile enforcement, as well as spent time on an ongoing investigation. Snowmobile traffic has remained high with the warmer temperatures. Enforcement action revolved around snowmobile registration violations.
COMeganFranzen(Silver Bay)spenttheweekprimarily monitoring snowmobile and angling activity. Time was also spent working snowmobile enforcement with other officers in the Pine County area. With little new snowfall and heavy use, many of the trails in southern Lake County are experiencing rough conditions, and riders are urged to use caution.
COTrentAnderson(Tofte) spent time working the trails and lakes for snowmobile and angling activity for the week. Trails remain in good condition due to consistent grooming by local clubs. Students at Cook County Middle School participated in a snowmobile safety presentation and are eager for the field day. Enforcement action was taken on a variety of angling and license related violations.
CO Cassie Block (Two Harbors) Spent time this week patrolling area trails for snowmobile activity. Block attended a local event about Ice safety, and spoke with other CO’s about how to be safe when out on frozen waterbodies. Time was also spent responding to various complaints and training with K9 Jet.
District 5 - Eveleth area CO Paul Kennedy (International Falls #1) had a busy week checking anglers and monitoring snowmobile trails. Anglers reported a better success as the week progressed. He assisted neighboring agencies on various calls including medical calls and a report of a snowmobile collision. He presented a Law and Ethics presentation at a snowmobile safety field day event. Enforcement action for the week included careless operation, speed, expired registration, and various snowmobile equipment violations. CO Curtis Simonson (International Falls #2) reports working snowmobile and angling activity this past week.Speedenforcementand registration were worked on area trails over the weekend. Anglers had reported a slower bite across area lakes CO John Slatinski IV (Ray) Angling and snowmobiling were once again the most popular activities in the area. Expired registration and missing registration decals on snowmobiles are still frequent. Canister “can” exhaust violations seem to have become more frequent comparted to last year. They are typically not legal and cause problems for landowners and local snowmobile clubs. Tolerance of this equipment is becoming less, and it has been requested that enforcement focus is increased. Anglers have been showing a mix of fish in the creel. Tulibee have been showing up frequently in large numbers, at times causing frustration for anglers targeting other species. CO Troy Fondie (Orr) reports monitoring angling and snowmobile activities over the week. Angling activity remains light with little observed being caught. Area forest roads were checked. Snowmobile trail conditions have declined. Above average temps for the upcoming week and no forecasted snow will further erode already marginal snow cover on trails.
CO Sean Cannon (Cook) worked snowmobile enforcement throughout the week. The trails were fairly busy during the week, getting very busy over the weekend. A large number of riders continue to ride like they are the only ones out, riding all over the trail; please remember to ride to the right to avoid crashes. The trails are getting beat up, and definitely could use a shot of new snow, but that does not appear to be in the cards anytime soon. Time was also spent checking ice anglers this week. Enforcement action taken this week included: Excessive speed on snowmobile, registration issues, loud snowmobile exhaust, careless riding, etc. COAaronLarson(Tower) workedprimarilyanglingand snowmobile enforcement. Time was also spent working a trapping case. Violations were related to snowmobile and ATV registration, driving an ATV on a snowmobile trail, loud illegal snowmobile exhaust, snowmobile speed, operate ATV on a highway, and fail to transfer snowmobile title.
CO Marc Johnson (Hibbing) primarily worked angling and snowmobile activity. In addition, time was spent attending a meeting to prepare for upcoming in-service training and maintaining station equipment. Snowmobile and angling activity both remain well below levels normally observed this time of year, with less-than-desirable trail conditions and anglers reporting little success since the cold-snap last month.
CO Shane Zavodnik (Virginia) time was spent checking anglers and working speed enforcement on snowmobile over the week. Trail conditions are starting to deteriorate due to lack of snow and above freezing temperatures. Recreational vehicle violations were addressed and CO Zavodnik also assisted with a snowmobile safety field day.
CO Duke Broughten (Aurora) spent the week monitoring ice fishing and snowmobiling activity. Outdoor recreational activity was lower than expected this week. Few fishermen were encountered. Fishermenreportedmoderate success. Snowmobilers were out but area trails could use more snow. CO Broughten also fielded calls regarding injured animals, firearm safety classes, and ATV registration requirements.
