St. Cloud help

[bigyooper]

I have a job offer in St.Cloud, I am trying to figure out if I want to take it. I would have to move down from Duluth and am worried I will miss the outdoors.

I am hoping someone can clue me in on how the hunting and fishing is down there. is there stream tout fishing? how about land to hunt on? how is the deer and turkey populations?

any help would be great, i am on the fence about taking the move so I am hoping you guys can give me some help,

Thanks

[Tippman]

Well I'm not too sure about stream trout fishing in the area, my guess is poor and I know it doesn't compare to the duluth area.

There is a fair amount of public land, it is however fairly heavily pressured, again not like up north.

There is an excellent deer and turkey population though. Getting permission to hunt turkeys on private land is usually pretty easy in my experience. Also if you bowhunt you have a lot better chance at finding private land and getting permission for deer hunting.

So overall I don't think St. Cloud quite compares to duluth but it sure beats the cities and there are plenty of hunting opportunities. Good pheasant hunting in the area also the past few years.

[bigdog]

Very few trout streams in the area but there is one lake that has trout west of St Cloud. Seems to be turkeys everywhere and the deer population is healthy. Access to land can be tough, I hunt public land instead. Lots of WMA's within an hours drive. Plenty of good fishing lakes nearby.

[89Bronco]

bigyooper...that's a tough one. If making a living, making money or your job is number one on the list then you'll be making the move. If hunting and fishing is on top of the list, I'd stay in Duluth. I live in St. Cloud now and I take a number of trips "up north." Yes, you can find lakes or rivers to fish. Yes, there are WMA's around to hunt on. But, take it from someone who grew up in I.Falls and on The Range, this is nothing like any place north of Duluth.

[Borch]

Fishing is very good for walleye, bass and pike. There are a few trout options but fishable trout streams are in short supply. Big Watab, Mud and the Quarry park quarries offer lake options for trout. Turkey hunting is very good. Deer hunting seems to cycle. Very good pheasant and waterfowl hunting in the area as well. There are definitely worse places to settle.

[UMDSportsman]

I reside in both, Dulth from september until may, and foley for the summer. One thing i have noticed is that in the winter ice fishing, there seems to be more pressure in st cloud, but also take into account that when i am in the st. cloud area it is on weekends, and i like to fish more on weekdays in duluth. Deer numbers are good in st cloud area, but as said before, public lands get way more pressure in st cloud area. In the past 5 years or so at my parents place we have started seeing turkeys. this past winter they were throwing corn in our back yard, and since our dog was put down last fall, we have had many turkeys, deer, and other wildlife in our back yard.

[Shoot2Kill]

Bigyooper -

For me that would be a no brainer - sorry this probably won't help your decision. I moved to St Cloud in Oct of 05 and finally moved out to the country last summer south of town. I thought getting out in the country would help, but the amount of people hunting around here is nuts - even on private ground. The deer hunting south of town in my area in my opinion is way below par and turkeys around here are sporadic at best. I had the option to move to Duluth when I moved to MN and I chose St Cloud due to being able to hunt farmland bucks vs big timber bucks...I wish I would have chosen differently. I much prefer the "up north" feel of it past Duluth vs all the people around St Cloud. It's a nice area and maybe I just haven't given it enough time, but if it's the outdoors you prefer I'd stay up north.

Good luck in your decision!

[bigb56303]

i just moved to anoka from saint cloud, and in my opinion the saint cloud area wasnt vey good for fishing, i never hunted but most all the lakes are recreational and i never had alot of luck. i grew up on the iron range just south of eveleth and there is nothing down this way that compares to the hunting and fishing up there i wish i could move back but theres no work for me up that way, the main thing is your job is number one you can thunt and fish if you dont have $$ and a good place to go just my 2 cents

[robbo17]

Bigyooper,

The St.Cloud area is like any place else. You have to learn the lake's you are going to fish. The fish are not going to just jump into the boat. This area has some of the best lakes to fish, once you learn how to fish them, and thats the fun part. I live in Annandale, and we have some of the best lakes in the state to fish. Clearwater is one of the best for walleyes, bass and some big pike. Sugar has walleyes, bass, pike and muskies. Slyvia is one the nicest lakes in the state, but it is one you have to fish after dark for walleyes. If you want to make the move, you first have to decide if you want to take the time to learn the lakes. I did it and I'm having a blast doing it.

[Captain B.R.K]

You need to be happy in the job, that is priority number uno. But you also are asking some good questions in regards to the outdoors in the ST.Cloud area.

I made the move to St.Cloud from Duluth because of a job three years ago. I haven't regretted 1 bit! WHY?

I have family in the North and SW Metro that makes the driving to their place a little quicker. I also have a number of good friends down here that moved from Duluth as well.

As for fishing and hunting opportunities. I am pretty fortunate to have a few places to hunt private land so I'm not going to have much of an opinion for you there. If you are big upland game hunter, you would be that much closer to SW MN or the dakota's to hunt.

As for fishing, there are going to be people out on the weekends because there are that many more people down here vs. Duluth. The quality of fishing however I think is pretty darn good regardless of the # of people on the lakes. If you have ever thought about getting into largemouth bass fishing, there are many options out there for you to try. If you enjoy walleye fishing (you better having the St.Louis up there ), there are number of lakes that provide good fishing and decent size fish to boot. You are about 1.5 hrs from Mille Lac's..might be the same distance from Duluth to there...dunno. You know how fishing is there! You'd also be closer to the Alexandria area lakes as well which provide fabulous fishing for all species!

I like it down here and glad I made the move!

Let us know what you decide.