Minnesota youth have until Friday, Aug. 17, to apply for 14 deer hunts in October, according to Mike Kurre, mentoring program coordinator for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
“Spend some one-on-one time and share your outdoor passion in some of Minnesota’s finest deer hunting venues where you can target deer and a memorable experience with a youth hunter,” Kurre said. “Youth deer hunts provide the much needed time away from a hectic lifestyle, and the quality time you need to connect a youth with an outdoors adventure.”
Youth ages 12-15 may apply for one of 12 special firearms youth deer hunts at selected state parks and refuges. Youth ages 12-17 may apply for special archery youth deer hunts.
Participating in a youth deer hunt does not preclude the youth from participating in the regular firearms deer season, but any deer harvested do count against the youth’s season bag limit.
A limited number of either-sex permits are available for the following hunts:
ARCHERY
- Camp Ripley Archery Hunt (open to youth 12-17), archery, Morrison County, Oct. 5-7, 175 permits.
- Lake Alexander Preserve (open to youth 12-17), archery, Morrison County, Oct. 5-7, 20 permits.
FIREARMS
- Afton State Park, firearms, Washington County, Nov. 3-4, 15 permits.
- Banning State Park, firearms, Pine County, Oct. 27-28, six permits.
- Buffalo River State Park, firearms, Clay County, Nov. 3-4, 14 permits.
- Great River State Park, firearms, Winona County, Oct. 27-28, 25 permits.
- Itasca State Park, firearms, Clearwater County, Oct. 13-14, 75 permits.
- Lake Bemidji State Park, firearms, Beltrami County, Oct. 13-14, 20 permits.
- Rydell National Wildlife Refuge, firearms, Polk County, Oct. 20-21, 20 permits.
- St. Croix State Park, firearms, Pine County, Oct. 27-28, 100 permits.
- Savanna Portage State Park, firearms, Aitkin County, Oct. 27-28, 20 permits.
- Sibley State Park, firearms, Kandiyohi County, Oct. 27-28, 10 permits.
- Tettegouche State Park, firearms, Lake County, Oct. 20-21, 10 permits.
- Zipple Bay State Park, firearms, Lake of the Woods County, Oct. 13-14, 20 permits.
Youth must apply for the hunt of his or her choice, which can be done at any DNR license agent; the DNR License Center at 500 Lafayette Road in St. Paul, or online at www.mndnr.gov/buyalicense.
If the number of applications exceeds the number of permits, a lottery will be conducted. Youth may only apply for one archery hunt and one firearms hunt.
An adult parent or guardian must accompany the youth at all times while hunting, but only the youth may hunt. Youth and their mentor must attend a mandatory pre-hunt orientation session. Successful applicants also must meet all firearms safety requirements, purchase all appropriate licenses and follow hunting regulations.
For more information on these hunts and more, visit www.mndnr.gov/discover and click on the youth deer hunts.
