Minnesota DNR used dynamite to destroy deer stands in state forest (2024)

DEER RIVER — Foresters for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources used dynamite to blow up two enclosed wooden deer stands state officials say were permanently left on state land against state law.

Neighbors in the area say the demolition was unsafe and unnecessary. Agency officials on Wednesday said the action didn't follow "DNR policy or reflect good judgment'' and that follow-up measures are likely.

Gary Meader / Duluth Media Group

The action occurred on state land within the Bowstring State Forest, about three-quarters of a mile southwest of Bowstring Lake in Itasca County, within earshot of residences.

The land is also within the boundaries of the Leech Lake Reservation, and the owner of the stands is an enrolled member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, friends and neighbors said.

Contributed / Jim Fena

The man is unwilling to come forward for fear of repercussions, said Kent Parks, of Deer River, who knows the owner and inspected the site after the explosion.

“I found the detonator cord they used. It makes absolutely no sense to have done this,’’ he said.

Parks and others said debris is still scattered for 100 feet around the former deer stands after the explosions, which occurred over the winter. The exact date remains unclear.

Contributed / Jim Fena

The mostly wooden structures — elevated shelters with roofs, walls and windows where hunters sat and watched for deer during hunting seasons — were about 4 by 8 feet, about 10 feet tall, and placed on wheeled trailers, Parks said. The structures had been there “at least 10 or 15 years.”

“Usually an elderly gentleman sat in there with his young nephews,’’ he said.

Parks and Jim Fena, who owns property about a half-mile from the deer stand site, said the explosions were heard more than 4 miles away.

Contributed / Jim Fena

“It shook my house," Fena told the News Tribune. “The windows rattled. … A can of co*ke vibrated off my bar. There were two explosions — one for each stand, I guess. The wood scattered around in there is splintered. It’s a mess. … You and I would be issued a ticket if we left a mess like that.”

Fena conceded the deer hunting stands may have been left on state land illegally and were not marked as a Leech Lake tribal member’s property.

“But that's not the point,” Fena said. “Why would they use explosives at all? And so close to people, and then not even tell anyone about it before?”

State law prohibits such large, permanent structures from being left on state forest land, and large structures used for deer hunting have been a problem on other public lands in recent years, such as St. Louis County forests. It’s unclear if Leech Lake tribal membership and reservation regulations would apply in this case.

DNR officials on Wednesday said forestry staff left notices on the deer stands in October, before deer season, indicating they needed to be removed as part of a broader project to clean up deer stands and other personal property left on state forest land against state regulations.

“After repeated efforts to contact the owner of the stands and a conversation with a relative of the owner, DNR forestry staff demolished the stands,’’ agency officials said in a statement to the News Tribune on Wednesday.

Contributed / Jim Fena

“While staff took the safety steps of blocking access to the area, confirming there were no other landowners immediately adjacent to the site, and notifying the appropriate authorities, the method of demolition did not follow DNR policy or reflect good judgment,” the statement noted. “We are evaluating the situation and will take appropriate follow-up measures.”

Because state forests are open to anyone to hunt on, and permanent deer stands essentially claim that area as private, the DNR works to keep them off state land. When a deer stand violating this prohibition is identified, DNR foresters tag the stand to alert the owner that it needs to be removed, thereby providing an opportunity for the owner to do so themselves.

Contributed / Jim Fena

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If the owner does not take action, deer stands that violate state statutes are typically removed by loading them on a trailer and hauling them out.

“Removal was not a reasonable option for the stands in this particular situation, leading to the decision to demolish them,’’ the agency statement said.

“They could have easily been moved,” Parks said. “They were on trailers with wheels, there are plenty of trails around there they could have used to drag them out. If they would have torn them down and hauled the materials out, I could understand that.”

John Myers reports on the outdoors, natural resources and the environment for the Duluth News Tribune. You can reach him at jmyers@duluthnews.com.