When Is the Early Goose, MN Hunting Season?

Minnesota, also known as the land of 10,000 lakes, supports one of the country's strongest environments for waterfowl hunting. This blog looks at the early season open dates, licensing requirements, and some preparation tips to help you make the most of this early season access to goose hunting. 

An Overview of Minnesota's Early Goose Season

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources administers the goose seasons to help maintain population numbers and allow equal access to hunting opportunities, as geese are a migratory species. 

The goose season typically lasts a few weeks and begins in early September. This year, the early goose season runs from September 1 to September 15, 2024, a statewide season. 

The early season is designed to control the population of resident geese, which can be abundant, with numbers remaining high across the state. This abundance can lead to crop damage or wider geese spread in urban and built-up areas.

By establishing an early season, the MDNR can manage the resident geese population before the big influx of migratory geese that come down from the north. 

Specific Dates and Regulations  for 2024

While the early season is statewide, the normal goose seasons are divided based on zoning with the dates as follows: 
 

• North Zone: September 21 – December 21
• Central Zone: September 21 – 29 and October 5 – December 26
• South Zone: September 21 – 29 and October 5 – December 26

These dates change year by year, so checking the Minnesota DNR webpage for the most up-to-date information regarding season allocations is essential. 

The bag limit for all three zones is the same, with 5 for Canada, white-fronted, brant (combined), and 20 for snow, blue snow, and Ross's. Again, these may change, so always check the latest updates before heading out on the water. 

Licensing and Permits

To hunt during the early goose season, you'll need a small game license, a state waterfowl stamp, and a federal migratory bird hunting and conservation stamp. A special goose permit (residents aged 16-64 and all nonresidents) is also required for the early season. 

A harvest information program (HIP) certification is required for waterfowl hunting and will be allocated when purchasing your license. This is free and will only take a few extra minutes when you apply online. It involves answering some questions about your migratory bird hunting experience in the previous year. 

Finally, all hunters born after December 31, 1979, must undertake firearms/hunter safety education to purchase a Minnesota hunting license. 

Preparation Tips for Early Goose Season

There are several hunting opportunities on public waters, including Wildlife Management Areas, federal Waterfowl Production Areas, county, state, and national forests, and private land opportunities (pending permission from the landowner). 

Start Scouting

The best way to get started is to download the HuntWise app and start e-scouting high-potential zones. In addition to waterways such as lakes, ponds, marshes, wetlands, and rivers, large agricultural and grain fields are considered, as this is where goose hunting is commonly done. More likely than not, this will be private hunting land, so use the HuntWise private land contact details feature to contact landowners requesting permission to hunt their land.

Additionally, consider their diet of grains, weeds, berries, and grasses and where they will roost up and travel to these feeding zones.

Once you've marked a few potential spots on your map, spend some time with boots on the ground in these areas, noting the flight patterns of the birds, where they are, at what time of day, and consider how the food, roosting, and flight paths interact to predict movement patterns. 

Consider Decoys

Decoy choice and placement is important to the success of your hunt.

Place high-quality decoys replicating geese in several positions with some mechanical and a spread of differing species to set a realistic scene. Always align these into the wind, creating a curve or U-shape to build a visual landing zone for geese.

Practice Calling

Pre-season is also a great time to start improving your calls. Start with simple and natural calls such as greeting, feeding, and comeback using real sounds to replicate and practice at home. 

Check Your Firearm

As a final point, ensure your shotgun complies with all regulations, use nontoxic shots, and spend some time at the range and hitting clay targets to get the eye in. 

When you're ready to head out, run through your gear checklist, double-check all regulations, and most importantly, have fun. 

Don't Miss the Early Goose, MN Season With HuntWise

The early goose is an excellent opportunity for locals to target geese and kick off the season with some success. While early-season hunting can sometimes be a feast or famine, with the tips above and the insights from the HuntWise app, you can kickstart your waterfowl hunting season with a bounty of stunning geese. 

Whether you want to hunt on public or private land, grab the HuntWise app to gain valuable insights into everything from weather patterns to mapping insights and more. 

HuntWise subscribers also have access to discounts on top-tier gear from our partners. So, if you need to update or add to your gear, HuntWise helps you do it for less.

Ready to explore the app? Download HuntWise and use it free for a week.