Shanty Removal Dates Approaching For Anglers In Michigan

LANSING (AP) - State officials say anglers should prepare to take down their ice shanties as warmer weather approaches.

The shelters must be removed by sunset on Sunday on Lake St. Clair and by midnight March 1 for southern Lower Peninsula counties.

Anglers in the northern Lower Peninsula and those on Michigan-Wisconsin boundary waters can keep their shanties up until midnight March 15. March 31 is the removal deadline in the Upper Peninsula.

Shanties still can be used after those dates, but must be taken down daily.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources says that regardless of the date, shanties should be taken down as soon as the ice is unable to safely hold them.

Penalties for owners whose shanties fall through the ice include up to 30 days in jail and fines.