- MDHA Admin
- MDHA News
- Hits: 7993
Minnesota Opening Weekend Rut Report
The 2025 Minnesota firearm deer season is here, and hunters are reporting a steady increase in rutting activity across the state. From the northern forests to the southern bluffs, deer movement is ramping up fast. Here’s how the rut is shaping up for each region.
- MDHA Admin
- MDHA News
- Hits: 2089
Keeping the Gates Open: How MDHA Protects Hunter Access in Minnesota
If you’ve spent time chasing whitetails across Minnesota, you’ve probably noticed the same thing we have — it’s getting harder to find places to hunt.
- MDHA Admin
- Event News
- Hits: 7135
Smiles, Success, and Tradition — Celebrating Minnesota’s Youth Deer Hunters
The Minnesota Deer Hunters Association (MDHA) loved seeing all the smiles and success stories shared from this past weekend’s Youth Deer Hunting Season! There’s nothing better than seeing young hunters out in the woods, learning responsibility, respect for wildlife, and the traditions that make Minnesota’s hunting heritage so strong.
- Tom Rusch
- From Whitetales
- Hits: 2185
Spruce Budworm Epidemic: The Periodic Demise of Balsam Fir in the Northern Forest
In Spring of 2025, massive wildfires threatened lives, rural communities, recreational property and forests in St Louis and Lake Counties in Northeast Minnesota. These catastrophic wildfires were fueled by a perfect combination of drought, unseasonably high temperatures (high 80s), low humidity (less than 20%) and extreme winds (25-40 mph) when the forest was just starting to green up over the opening weekend of the Minnesota fishing season.
- Joel Herring
- From Whitetales
- Hits: 2535
The Hidden Cost of Cellular Trail Cameras: Are Mature Bucks Avoiding Them?
For seasoned whitetail hunters, trail cameras are more than tools—they’re the backbone of pre-season scouting, early-season strategies, and real-time intel during the rut. Coincidence? Maybe. But if you’ve hunted long enough, you know coincidence doesn’t explain consistent patterns. Mature bucks don’t live five, six, or seven years by luck. They’re adaptive survivors, hyper-aware of change, pressure, and intrusion.
- Jake Blow
- From Whitetales
- Hits: 1987
Is Hiring a Habitat & Hunting Consultant Worth It?
How much is your property worth?
This seems like an odd way to start answering the question, but it’s important to realize that a recreational property is often worth just as much as building a new house. Even a 40-acre tract with no access and no utilities in northern Minnesota is likely going to sell for $100,000. Would you build a house worth that much without a plan? Can you come up with an appropriate floor plan that will use every square foot of space efficiently? It’s too expensive to fix stuff after it’s built, and our deer hunting properties are no different. Respect your property for what it’s worth.
