OutdoorMN News - Public invited to James Meger Memorial WMA dedication Oct. 13

[Rick]

Dedication to be part of 7th Annual Minnesota Governor’s Pheasant Hunting Opener

The public is invited to attend the dedication of Minnesota’s newest public hunting land, the James Meger Memorial Wildlife Management Area, near Marshall, at 4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 13, as part of the Minnesota Governor’s Pheasant Hunting Opener. 

The ceremony will include comments from Gov. Mark Dayton, Lt. Gov. Tina Smith and Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Tom Landwehr, among other local leaders.

The James Meger Memorial WMA was made possible by Pheasants Forever and more than a dozen other conservation groups and large donors.

“This has been a very rewarding project,” said Ron Prorok, Lyon County Pheasants Forever treasurer. “It couldn’t have happened without the hard work and generosity of so many partners.”

The new WMA honors the late James Meger, who was from the Marshall area and a renowned wildlife artist. His artwork raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for wildlife habitat as well as conservation groups.

“We think this is a fitting tribute,” Prorok said. “It’s 155 acres along a creek just a few miles northwest of his hometown of Minneota. James Meger’s art helped raise so much money for public lands, so it’s only fitting that public hunting land with his name on it will have a work of art at its entrance.”

That work of art is a large stone monolith marking Meger’s contributions to conservation. Names of donors and contributing conservation groups also will be etched in to the decorative stone.

The new WMA is located 4 miles north of Taunton in Yellow Medicine County, or about 22 miles northwest of Marshall.

The dedication is part of the 2017 Minnesota Governor’s Pheasant Hunting Opener. Gov. Dayton leads the weekend festivities, which feature many hunting, recreational and travel opportunities the Marshall area has to offer visitors. More information and updates on the event can be found at exploreminnesota.com/mngpho.

Marshall has a population of 13,680 and is located 150 miles southwest of the Twin Cities at the junctions of U.S. Highway 59 and Minnesota highways 19, 23 and 68. Marshall and southwest Minnesota actively promotes hunting and outdoor recreation. Within 25 miles of Marshall, there are 37 Walk-In Access areas totaling just under 3,000 acres, 20 waterfowl production areas totaling approximately 3,779 acres and 132 WMAs totaling 24,407 acres. In Lyon County alone, there are 47 WMAs totaling 11,184 acres. All are open to public hunting.

Explore Minnesota and the DNR are assisting the Marshall Area Chamber of Commerce in planning the event.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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