ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — This is the weekend that hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans wait for all year long — the opening of the firearms deer season.

Minnesota has nearly 500,000 deer hunters and a large portion of them will be spending Saturday and Sunday in tree stands, hoping to bag a trophy buck.

The Department of Natural Resources expects a good hunt, though the regulations have been adjusted to reduce the harvest this year as the agency seeks to rebuild or maintain the deer herd in certain portions of the state. Last year’s harvest was 192,300 deer.

The firearms deer season closes in northern Minnesota on Nov. 18, and on Nov. 11 in all other parts of the state. A late season in southeastern Minnesota opens Nov. 17 and closes Nov. 25.

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