MINNEAPOLIS — Rain poured on Saturday morning in the backwaters of the Minnesota River near Sacred Heart. Teal, mallard and wood duck sightings were spotty on Minnesota’s first day of duck hunting.

But Anthony Thompson, 16, relished his initial outing in a duck blind, and waterfowling gained a new convert.

“Honestly, I could stay out ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A heroic French bulldog sacrificed itself to save its owners during a bear attack in Northern California earlier this month.

The couple were severely injured, but survived the Sept. 19 attack. However, their beloved dog Cassie was injured and died two days later.

The couple — identified as Trinity County residents Mallory and...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — For decades, when it came to shooting a deer in Minnesota, your gun of choice — shotgun or rifle — was determined by where you hunted.

A squiggly line slanting across the state’s midsection demarcated a “shotgun-only” zone to the south and west, where muzzleloaders and handguns were also allowed but rifles were banned,...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — For the first time since Minnesota found chronic wasting disease in one of its wild deer in 2010, the state is changing how it monitors the fatal neurological condition.

The new plan by the Department of Natural Resources effectively started last weekend, the beginning of the archery hunting season.

The shift comes as Minnesota...Read more

NORFOLK, Va. — A retired general is suing the Gloucester (Va.) County sheriff in federal court alleging that by allowing hunters and their dogs to enter his property without penalty despite “no trespassing” signage, the sheriff is violating the Fifth and 14th amendments.

The complaint filed this month in the Eastern District of Virginia ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — When Nick Amunrud finally climbs into a tree this fall with his compound bow, his family’s soybeans and corn will be harvested, and his field work will be done for another season.

That will be more than a month after this weekend’s opening of Minnesota’s archery season for deer. But that’s OK. The peak of the whitetail ...Read more

BALTIMORE — Derrick “Rick” Jones can’t remember a time when he didn’t love catfish — the moist, tender flesh when it’s cooked right, the mild, slightly sweet flavor and the crunch of a proper cornmeal crust when it’s fried.

Such sensations have given Jones, a Costco employee and part-time real estate agent, little tastes of ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — When Bailey Sandmeyer saw a black bear saunter toward her bait, her left hand tightened the grip of her bow. Drawing back her bowstring, she thought she had a shot — but just for an instant.

As quickly, she reconsidered and returned the string to its resting position.

This was in the deep woods of northeast Minnesota, and her...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Statewide Minnesota roadside pheasant counts are up almost 20% from a year ago, according to information released last Tuesday by the Department of Natural Resources.

The population bounce builds on a nearly 50% statewide pheasant buildup recorded in 2025 from 2024. Favorable spring nesting conditions that followed a mild winter...Read more

SAN DIEGO — For most of his young life, Merrick Meyers and his dad would drive to tackle shops 15 miles north or 25 miles south of Encinitas to gear up for their fishing trips. One day last fall, Meyers’ dad asked him what he thought about opening a tackle shop of their own, closer to home.

Meyers laughed it off.

“It was like, that would...Read more

HILTON HEAD, S.C. — Pro and amateur anglers will compete next weekend to see who can catch the heaviest Redfish from Port Royal’s waters.

The Southern Redfish Cup is coming to Port Royal on Saturday, Sep. 12 for the second stop in its 2026 tournament series. The annual tournament welcomes both professional and amateur anglers to compete for...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — The other day, I planned a hunting trip for the third week of October and thought briefly, then dismissed, the idea of booking a motel room.

This would be for pheasants, or maybe I would divert for grouse and woodcock. Either way, the motel in question would be a dump, or what the kids call sketchy. I’d rather sleep with my ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Department of Natural Resources fisheries section chief Brad Parsons grew up in southeast Wisconsin. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, he studied Kokanee salmon as a University of Wyoming graduate student.

Hired in 1986 by the Minnesota DNR as a research scientist, he worked briefly in Waterville ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Black bears near Dennis Udovich’s northeast Minnesota home are in a feeding frenzy, chomping berries, plums and whatever else they can find to gain as much as 30 pounds a week.

Winter is coming, and they need all the fat they can get.

In his 47th year as a bear hunting guide, Udovich is similarly obsessed. In the woods every ...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — Florida is going on a bear hunt again this year.

The state Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission recently announced there will be a new bear hunting season that begins Dec. 5 and ends Dec. 28, the second in as many years.

The agency will open the hunting permit portal Sept. 11 to those who want to apply for a permit to “...Read more