Hunters in Minnesota will have more opportunities to fill their tags starting this Thursday.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has expanded their early antlerless season for 2020 to include more deer permit areas in central and southeastern Minnesota. The areas where this is happening have deer populations that are above population goals or have an increased risk of chronic wasting disease spreading amongst the population. These extra tags will allow for more herd control.

To participate in the early antlerless season (October 15th-18th), hunters must possess an archery, firearm or muzzleloader license and at least one valid early antlerless permit. They must use weapons matching the parent license used to purchase their early antlerless permit. See a list of eligible permit areas for this hunt here. 

Youth deer hunting also opens on October 15th, 2020 which has proved to be growing more popular:

During last year’s inaugural statewide youth season, nearly 5,700 young deer hunters harvested a deer, which represented a 77 percent increase from the previous season when it was limited to fewer areas.

The youth deer hunting season is October 15th-18th.

I know I'm looking forward to spending time in a deer stand that has the potential to be not as cold. The odds of it being a nice day in mid-October vs. early November are odds I'm willing to take. Plus I'm not much of a trophy hunter anyway. You can't eat antlers, and I love fresh venison.

Good luck to all hunters this fall season, have fun, and stay safe and warm.

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