Minnesota Weather Briefs: Minnesotans wake-up to freezing temperatures

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Ice cold

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Bundle up! Three-quarters of the Minnesota is under either a freeze warning or frost advisory this morning.

The National Weather Service says most of the upper half of the state will stay in the upper-20's to mid-30's until well after daybreak. The coldest spots -- mid-20's -- are in places like Big Fork, Hibbing, Roseau and Warroad. Meanwhile, the southwestern quarter of the state is under a frost advisory. Southeastern Minnesota, including the Twin Cities, Rochester, Albert Lea and Mankato should stay above the freezing mark this morning.

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Drought conditions around the state will likely have an impact on waterfowl hunters this season. The lack of rain has created extremely low water conditions in many shallow lakes and wetland basins that are popular for hunters. However, The DNR's Steve Cordts says the duck numbers are looking good right now and hunters can have increased success in dry years such as this. The season starts Saturday.

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There are few fond memories of the early winter which hit Minnesota 21-years ago. Before the Halloween snowstrom of 1991 came the first appearance of snow on this day in Duluth. It was more than a dusting -- in fact around two-and-a-half-inches fell -- the largest and earliest September snowstorm in Duluth's history.

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More areas are being reopened in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, thanks to successes by firefighters this week. Conditions remain dry but U.S. Forest Service spokesperson Becca Manlove expects the situation to keep improving due to fewer people recreating in the woods. The largest fire is just over the Canadian border at Emerald Lake where more than 525 acres are burning. Two smaller fires in Minnesota have been put out in recent days: the Parley Lake and Hoist Bay fires.

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Minnesota farmers have gone from praying for rain to enjoying the continued dry conditions. The late summer harvest advanced in the past week as 16-percent of the state's soybean crop is now in. Corn is now 12-percent harvested while 80-percent of the statewide crop is now mature. Farmers had nearly an entire week of dry conditions to work in the fields.

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