12/16/2025

N. WISCONSIN - The Wisconsin DNR has announced preliminary results for the 2025 nine-day gun deer hunt. License sales totaled 790,044 as of November 30, a slight decrease from 2024. 550,611 licenses sold were for gun privileges. Final sales figures will be available in January. Hunters registered 182,084 deer during the gun season – 86,068 antlered, 96,016 antlerless, an overall drop of .8% statewide compared to 2024. Total deer registered since the start of bow and crossbow seasons is 294,757, up 1.1% from last year. Hunters who harvested their first deer can get a first harvest certificate. The antlerless-only holiday hunt is scheduled for Dec. 24-Jan. 1, 2026, in select farmland zone counties. More harvest details are on the DNR’s website.

12/16/2025

UPPER MICHIGAN - A coalition of environmental and business groups says Michigan taxpayers could end up paying billions for the Line 5 tunnel, the four-mile underground passage Enbridge wants to build to contain its aging pipeline beneath the Straits of Mackinac. A new report from Oil and Water Don't Mix and Clean Water Action, claims the project, long promoted as a safer alternative than the existing dual pipes on the lakebed, could shift billions of dollars in financial risk onto the state. Report co-author Sean McBrearty says the agreement pushed through at the end of the Snyder

administration means Enbridge builds the tunnel, but Michigan will own it.

0:13  "That means that Michigan taxpayers could be responsible for the catastrophic clean-up, water system repairs, tourism losses, public health emergencies and multi-billion-dollar infrastructure disruptions, if something goes wrong."

Enbridge disputes the report in response, saying Michigan is "fully indemnified" under its agreements – meaning the state will be compensated for its losses – and that taxpayers won't pay for any incident. The company contends it has financial strength and certified assurances to cover all cleanup costs and notes state regulators have already approved the project.

12/16/2025

LUTSEN - Bryce Campbell, the former owner of the Lutsen Lodge who is accused of burning it to the ground in February 2024, is now out of jail.  Campbell made his first court appearance on Monday in Cook County. He is currently charged with arson and insurance fraud.  Campbell is out on a $100,000 bail but is not allowed to leave the state of Minnesota without permission from the probation officer, cannot possess or use a firearm, ammunition, or dangerous weapons and must report to his probation officer on the first day of every month.  Campbell voluntarily agreed to the conditions.  Campbell is set to appear in court again on March 9, 2026.