Today and Sunday are free fishing days throughout the state of Kentucky.
Now, that doesn’t necessarily mean you can go fishing without incurring expenses in this state. If you’re buying a tank of gas to go on an angling adventure, there’s this. Pretty much everything we do has a price the same, but fishing can be inexpensive in the scheme of things.
Free Fishing Days further reduce the tax burden of related fishing activity by offering a two-day forgiveness on the requirement to have a fishing license to participate in the sport. This is not a huge saving, because a fishing license, in relative terms, is not very expensive. But that might be enough to create a barrier to the fishing experience.
That’s the whole idea of free fishing days. The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife grants the annual sighting as two days during which fishing licenses are not required. Therefore, those who are interested in trying their hand at fishing but have been stymied by the cost of a permit have the opportunity to sample the pursuit without shelling out for the routine permit.
The rules for fishing today and Sunday do not change whether or not one has a fishing license. Rules such as pot limits (how many fish of certain species can be kept) or minimum size restrictions are still the same.
Free fishing days also don’t change property laws. That it, permission from the landowner is still required to fish in private waters like ponds or, for that matter, public waters from private land.
The purpose of free fishing days is more than just giving people a nice gift. The KDFWR is responsible for managing Kentucky’s fisheries, and it takes a base of public support to do so. It is the licensing public that funds the management of Kentucky’s fisheries and cares most about the well-being of the fish populations and the waters in which they exist.
Managers need active anglers across the state to support the fishery, and the idea is that the best way to prepare future anglers is to give them a first taste of fishing and let the business sell itself. Managers are finding removing the hurdle of fishing license fees for sampling sessions to be beneficial, giving potential fishers the opportunity to see what they could benefit from on a regular basis for the cost of a license.
An annual license for a Kentucky resident again costs $23. For someone who both fishes and hunts, a combined annual license for a Kentucky resident costs $42.
The best deal for many anglers and jack-of-all-trades will be the sportsman’s license, which covers hunting, fishing and most licenses, including the deer license, spring and fall turkey and state permit for waterfowl and migratory birds as well as trout fishing. permit. The Athlete’s Annual License, even at $95, represents a significant savings over the total price of individual licenses and permits for the Athlete engaged in almost anything on the sporting calendar.
Remember that no fishing license is required for children under 16 years old. Parents may want to take advantage of license-free opportunities today and Sunday, but young kids always have the equivalent of free fishing days if parents or guardians just want to take them.
The best license agreement for fishing and hunting is the senior sportsman’s license, the one required for people aged 65 or over. The Senior License is the equivalent of the Sportsman’s License, plus also includes permission for unlimited additional antlerless deer licenses, and it sells for just $12 per year. But maybe you are only interested in fishing? So buy the senior license just for that.
It’s only $12, and no one is forcing you to go hunting unless you want to.
There is a similar license at the same low price for those who are classified as disabled.
Licenses and permits are available for sale at a number of retail outlets and county clerks’ offices with computer terminals hooked up to the Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources system.
All licenses and permits can also be purchased online at the KDFWR website, www.fw.ky.gov.
A post-season chart from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources shows slightly fewer turkey hunters took slightly more turkey gobblers during the last spring hunting season in that state.
Illinois hunters took a total of 13,701 wild turkeys during their 2022 spring turkey season, less than 100 birds of the 13,613 turkeys harvested in spring 2021. Meanwhile, there has been a total of 81,903 turkey licenses sold, compared to 83,240 sold. in the spring of 2021.
Even the slight increase in the spring turkey crop in Illinois contrasts with that of Kentucky, where the spring crop is down more than 2,300 birds from 2021.
Kentucky’s spring turkey crop was 26,862, approaching double that of Illinois but still the lowest in 14 years for Kentucky hunters.
The best county in Illinois for harvesting turkeys was Jefferson, where 422 bearded birds were captured.
The top county for harvesting turkeys in far southern Illinois — and fifth for harvesting statewide — was Pope County with 312 reported birds tagged.
Steve Vantreese is an outdoor freelance writer. Email outdoor news to [email protected] or call 270-575-8650.
