That to me is even more upsetting. How's the DNR get that money to buy the land and build those roads? Isn't it from hunters like us? Then they block access to that land??????? That really, really gets me.

Well I guess it was windy out there this year.

Same thing happened to us this year in the 3B season. Hunting private land with shared access to one of the valleys we use to run the 4-wheelers to drag the deer out at night. Low and behold the other group put up a barbed wire fence running the entire length of the access opening. We had already secured permission from the landowner (as we have for the last 35 years) but the fence was put up on opening morning. The landowner was away for the weekend (funny) and without wanting to start something with a bunch of ***holes we had to access the valley from the other side. This was no small feet as we had to gain access from another landowner and run an extra mile or so on the bottom of a valley to retrieve our deer. Oh, yea, the access that they fenced off is also a state snowmobile trail which is clearly marked. Made things very difficult for us all week long.

I live in 170 and I'd bet it WAS the DNR. They do it all the time. A logger will go in, make a road or improve an old trail and the DNR will cut/push some trees over the trail.

The reason is they are trying to keep the trail in as good of shape as possible because they can sell the timber for more stumpage money if there is good accessalready in there.

I have gotten into arguments several times with the local foresters over this.

I know of one area where the logger put a very long road in. As soon as he was done the DNR put up a berm full of trees/stumps and the Ruffed Grouse Society put up a sign saying something about grouse management area and your tax dollars at work. Funny thins was the logger is a friend and when I asked him about it he said he had paid to put the road in, no tax money at work there-- lol

Gotta love the state beaucracy fellas-

michael

Thanks for the info mn_archer...didn't know that, but it makes some sense.

Or maybe the RGS sign was for the clover and other seeding that had been done along the trail, at least that is what I have seen in the past.

I've seen this on paper land and county land up in Itasca. Both cutting down trees and dumping piles of dirt to block the road. People tend to look down on road hunters, and I think this is an attempt at a solution of sorts. FYI I see a lot of deer road hunters and a ton of grouse road hunters in that area.

Hey Buckkiller, where are you hunting in 170? We hunt about 4 miles north of Remer & 1 mile east of Graves Lake in Chippewa National.

Thursday of opening week I heard chainsaws for over two hours, nail pounding & large trees crashing. I got [PoorWordUsage] and left my stand early to see if I could find out who was cutting. Got back to camp to find orange fliers on our truck windshields. They were from the forestry, which had information about some of the new rules on using the forest roads. I jumped in my truck and drove down the road a little and then I saw all the trees cut down, blocking many of the unmarked smaller trails, I then put 2 & 2 together and knew that the DNR had been doing all the cutting. I thought for sure someone was cutting shooting lanes and putting up permanent stands.

Hey Trashguy,
we hunt on the forestry RD 2113 if you know where that is... best i can describe it is its where highway 65 and 52 cross ( about 6 or 7 miles east of boy river). probably not to far from you.

What did those flyers say?

Yea Buckkiller you are not to far from us at all. I fish Vermilion just off 65 north of where you are hunting a few miles.

Can't remember what was all in the flier, but I know the same info is on the "Chippewa National Forest" web site. Have been watching it for the last year or more, so I was not to surprised by what I read in the flier. I can find the link if you want me too.

How did you do hunting? We ended up with one 7 pt, (for the 3 of us) but saw very few deer. I bow hunted the same area and again saw very few deer in three weeks of hunting.

Last April/May (looking for mushrooms), I did see the remnants of quite a few deer in our small area that we hunt. Don't know if they were wolf or winter kills though.

I did see a few wolves bow hunting and that is pretty rare for me. Been hunting up there since 1971.

Regards,
Larry

this was our third year in the area, my uncle bought 10 acres of land off of 65 between the intersections of 4 and 135, that we camp on. we ended 5 deer for 8 people in that area two 8 Pointers a 10, a doe and a fawn (which was my brothers first deer).

we also shot 3 more while bow hunting but not from the remer area (4 point, a doe and a fawn). so we ended up with more then enough deer.

I got the only two deer I saw this year (one of the 8 pointers and the 10) but the rest of the group saw a bunch of deer (probably around 15-20, mostly does tho).

i'll just google the websight and see if I can find it... kind of curious to see what says. Ill let you know if I can't find it

thanks for the info,

Tim

yup this sums it up...

" Cross-country travel, off designated Forest Service roads, is prohibited for any reason. Only roads displayed on the Motor Vehicle Use Map are open to motorized recreational use. OHV use for big game retrieval or placement of hunting stands continues to be prohibited on national forest land.

" Cross-country OHV travel to set up any stand/blind or for big game retrieval is illegal on national forest lands and leads to other resource damage, including the cutting of timber for shooting lanes, litter, and creating illegal trails. Information on permanent stands and OHV use on national forest lands can be found on the Chippewa National Forest website at www.fs.fed.us/r9/forests/chippewa.

" The Chippewa National Forest allows hunters to use portable stands/blinds that do not damage trees or resource and that are removed at the end of the hunting season. Portable stands are defined as those that are chained, belted, clamped, or tied with rope and do no damage. Portable stands/blinds may be set up one week prior to the hunting season through one week after the close of hunting season. (August-January 7, 2008.) Portable stands left after the close of hunting season will be impounded and owner issued a violation notice for abandoning property.

Almost all state forests have been redesignated concerning trails usage. DNR has a great forest reclassification page.

Highway vehicles must also be reliscensed as OHV's to be used on trails designated OHV. Have fun with that at the DMV, I read the regulations with the ladies three times before they agreed to "try the impossible" which worked of course.