Columnist | Outdoors

Anderson was born in North Dakota, but grew up in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. He has an undergraduate degree in English from the University of Minnesota, Morris and a master's in journalism from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, where his focus was communications law.


Anderson: Fishing hooks kids and grown-ups together, and we should do it more often

In Minnesota and Alaska and a million places in between, kids can benefit from fishing — fish or no fish. Getting them started early can yield lifelong benefits, including to parents.


Anderson: Will new tech mean the end of fishing, or the end of fishing as we know it?

New gadgets allow anglers to see underwater in real time, and watch their lures fall toward their targets.


Anderson: While invasive carp swim upstream, DNR forms a committee

The presence of silver carp in the Mississippi River and the threat they pose to Minnesota game fish, as well as lake and river recreation, has been apparent for at least a dozen years.


Anderson: Guides' guide to summer, whether boating, fishing or paddling

Some of Minnesota's most interesting people make a living not in an office but in a boat or canoe.


Anderson: In Minnesota, fish hook women, too — and in big numbers

In Minnesota, about 20% of anglers are women — a number that's thought to be highest in the nation. But would even more take to the water if given the chance?


Anderson: On yet another opener, Upper Red produces many walleyes

Thousands of anglers descend on the lake in northern Minnesota, seeking five-walleye limits.


Anderson: Meet Leech Lake's legend who fishes on despite paralysis

A 2019 stroke and accident left him almost entirely paralyzed, but 85-year-old Al Maas, a longtime guide on the northern Minnesota lake, keeps looking forward to the walleye opener.


'Walleye Road Trip': Cruise Minnesota and catch our tastiest fish

To spark the imagination and nurture the wanderlust many anglers harbor, follow along with outdoors columnist Dennis Anderson on our seven-day Walleye Road Trip.


Anderson: Ice-out for walleye opener? Local anglers offer updates

Spring has come late, and slowly, to northern Minnesota. Here's the latest conditions on our favorite lakes.


Anderson: Environmental Q&A with former Gov. Carlson. 'It's our survival we're talking about'

"I've always felt if a choice must be made between commerce and the environment, the environment should win,'' former Minnesota governor Arne Carlson said in an interview with columnist Dennis Anderson.