Dear sir:
Like northern Minnesota, Northwestern Ontario is an extremely hard place to eke out a living. Wood products and tourism are the two main industries that drive our economy.
The people who live up here do so not to get rich. We cherish this land, the lakes, and the rivers.
However, we are under constant attack from people in places like Toronto and Minneapolis, who accuse us of not being good stewards of the land. In many cases, they use pseudo-science to curb our outdoor activities but when that fails, they revert to sensationalism.
Although I am not a bear hunter, I am in the woods enough to know that the bear numbers are away up. In fact, the bears frequently roam into local towns.
To stop the spring bear hunt is senseless, maddening, and it shows a total lack of compassion for the hard-working and honest people that make Northwestern Ontario their home.
On behalf of my many friends and fellow outfitters across the river, I beg Mr. Snobelen to please reinstate the spring bear hunt. Do not let the sensationalism coming out of Toronto with absolutely no facts rule the day. My Canadian friends in Northwestern Ontario are more conservation-minded than any people who have lived in Toronto their entire lives could hope to be.
Please do not put their families in complete turmoil by needlessly jeopardizing their livelihoods.
Respectfully yours,
Barry “Woody” Woods
Woody’s Fairly Reliable Guide Service
Ranier, Mn.