Ice house removal deadline on Monday for central and southern Minnesota

Monday marks the final day for anglers to get their ice fishing houses off of most Minnesota lakes before the state deadline.

Anyone who doesn’t have their fish house off the ice in central and southern Minnesota by 11:59 p.m. Monday can be cited and have their ice house confiscated, removed or destroyed. The northern third of the state has until 11:59 p.m. on March 20 to get their structures off lakes.

After the deadline, anglers can only have shelters on the ice between midnight and one hour before sunrise, and they must be occupied or attended.

Officials with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources have been warning anglers of the deadline and noted last week that it might take a little extra work to remove an ice house this year.

“It’s been a weird year for ice conditions, especially here locally. We’ve had a mix of rain, slush, warm temperatures, so the ice conditions have been probably worse than most years, so it’s really important to plan ahead. Don’t expect to come out here and just hook up and go; you might have to bring some extra equipment out,” DNR Conservation Officer Garrett Thomas said.

The DNR has more guidance on ice safety online.