Outdoor Activities in Minnesota Set to Open Back Up

DULUTH, Minn.– A select group of businesses across Minnesota can now re-open and they are all eager to start back up again.

“We couldn’t be more excited,” said Darrin Bell, General Manager of the Northland Country Club.

Governor Walz announced Friday that the state is loosening restrictions on outdoor activities.

Businesses like golf courses are now allowed to open back up.

The golf course at the Northland Country Club in Duluth is ready to open ahead of schedule. The staff are planning to open up the course next week.

Carts and clubs can be used but they will be sanitized after each use. And only one person will be able to ride a cart at a time. The driving range will be seeing some changes too.

Hitting mats will be 10 feet apart to keep golfers spread out. All golf balls will be left until the end of the day and will be properly sanitized overnight.

Bell says golf is a great way to stay healthy and still social distance.

“Golf can be healthy. You know, it is a solo sport. There’s not a lot, there shouldn’t be a lot, of contact in the game but it can be done very responsibly,” said Bell.

Bait shops are also re-opening.

Chalstrom’s Bait and Tackle is ready to go.

Owner John Chalstrom thinks the timing couldn’t be better with the fishing opener coming up soon. He says that’s the store’s busiest week of the year and expects it to be even busier.

“It just means the difference between going out of business and going into a good year,” said Charlstrom. “This is going to be a real decent year for us I know there’s a lot of people that are going to get out fishing and that’s going to help us out a lot.”

Chalstrom’s also has an archery shop and indoor range.

The range was a host to multiple archery leagues who had their seasons cut short because of Coronavirus. Charlstrom says archery season for turkeys has stayed open and that has helped his shop get business.

The fight against Coronavirus still goes on but for some, these new guidelines feel like a light at the end of the tunnel.

“It feels like this whole thing is kind of ending and that’s good because we need to keep the doors open and the business rolling,” said Charlstrom.

Both Chaltrom’s Bait and the Northland Country Club say they are planning to bring back all their staff to the positions they held before the pandemic.