Weekly CO report

District 11 - St. Cloud area

CO Stephen Westby (Little Falls) assisted with the 2025 Conservation Officer Academy at Camp Ripley for use of force training. Calls were taken about angling and boating related complaints. Further investigation continues of an ongoing complaint at Camp Ripley.

CO Andrew Struffert (Pierz) worked angling, watercraft, and ATV enforcement. Enforcement action was taken for failure to renew ATV registration. Struffert also attended Safety Day at Camp Ripley and performed equipment maintenance.

CO Caleb Silgjord (Sauk Centre) spent time during the week assisting with CO Academy firearms training at Camp Ripley. Follow up was conducted on an aquatic plant management violation, with enforcement action being taken for chemically treating aquatic vegetation without a permit. Angling activity was worked in the station. The recent cold front slowed the fish bite on area lakes. Time was also spent patrolling the station for ORV activity.

CO Todd VanderWeyst (Paynesville) worked on administrative tasks and vehicle maintenance this past week. He worked through the change in weather and found activity slow for the fish bite. Bowfishing remains a priority for VanderWeyst, as does a minnow-trapping investigation.

CO Chad Ziegler (Albany) spent the week focused on fishing activity. The bite remained slow, though some anglers had luck. High winds kept fishing activity lower. Time was also spent on equipment maintenance.

CO Adam Stennett (Annandale) reports great weather for the fishing opener, but anglers found mixed success. Enforcement for the week included operating an unregistered boat, failure to transfer boat registration, and no horn or whistle on board a boat.

CO Keith Bertram (Long Prairie) reports the fishing has really slowed with the weather change. Time was spent handling nuisance- and injured-animal complaints. A wetland violation was also addressed.

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