Outdoors briefly

Drought status eases to moderate
REGIONAL— Mid-September rains helped ease drought conditions in northern St. Louis and Lake counties, but an extended forecast that points to warmer and dryer conditions into the first half of October, suggests that the region isn’t out of the drought woods just yet.
Meanwhile, extreme drought conditions can be found as close as Duluth and much of Carlton and Pine counties, along with virtually all of far northern Wisconsin. That’s according to the U.S. Drought Monitor’s latest report, issued Sept. 24.
Across northern St. Louis and Lake counties, the Drought Monitor shows moderate drought conditions remain, an improvement from the severe drought conditions that had prevailed since late July. More southerly parts of the counties, which received less rainfall in September than more northerly areas, remain in severe drought.
A return to drier conditions certainly looks like a possibility. Both the 6-10- and 8-14-day forecasts point to conditions that are warmer and drier than normal.

Turkey season opens Saturday

REGIONAL— Thanksgiving isn’t far away, and that might encourage hunters in the North Country to consider a turkey hunt this fall. The season opens this Saturday, Oct. 3 and runs through Sunday, Nov. 1.
Hunters are allowed to take one turkey of either sex during the fall season. Fall turkey hunters may use a crossbow, bow or shotgun afield. More information is available on the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources turkey hunting webpage (mndnr.gov/hunting/turkey).

Hunters should buy licenses early
REGIONAL—All hunters this year should plan to buy their license early to avoid the potential for any last-minute delays.
The Minnesota DNR launched a new electronic license system in June. The new system is functioning well, but it is a bit different and users may find their first transaction takes a little more time as they acclimate. In addition, some individuals who had multiple records in the old system will require customer assistance from the DNR License Center to transfer their history and establish their account in the new system. For these reasons, hunters are encouraged to leave plenty of time for their license purchase.
There are three ways to buy a license (mobile app, online, or in person from a license agent) and three ways to carry it (paper, PDF, or stored in the app). Customers can access the new system on the Minnesota DNR website (mndnr.gov/buyalicense) or by searching “Minnesota DNR Licensing” in the Apple or Google app stores.