Thirty-eight million Americans hunt and fish, making those activities the largest outdoor sporting events in the country. Individual hunters average spending $1,638 each year on hunting activities while anglers spend $1,046 each year on fishing activities.

To celebrate those great traditions a special day is set aside each year. National Hunting and Fishing Day (NHFD) is Saturday, Sept. 26, and Georgia will celebrate that day along with the rest of the country in recognizing the truly American traditions of hunting and fishing.

This annual celebration creates a better public awareness of the important role that outdoorsmen and outdoorswomen have played in conservation and improvement of our national resources. Pres. Theodore Roosevelt was one of those early conservationists who influenced many of our fish and game laws today.

Millions of America’s hunters and anglers work each day to conserve, repair and improve our country’s great natural resources. The U.S. Congress and Pres. Richard Nixon established NHF Day in 1973 to recognize hunters and anglers for the time and money they donate to wildlife conservation programs. Those contributions total more than a billion dollars annually.

Many outdoor activities are planned this year to celebrate NHFD in Georgia. NHFD events are held each year with the idea of not only ensuring a bright future for hunting, fishing and other outdoor events, but to also recognize the past conservation efforts and achievements of American outdoorsmen and outdoorswomen.

In Georgia the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Resources Division (WRD), has numerous outdoor events planned for NHFD.

“If you are interested in outdoor activities, such as hunting, fishing, wildlife watching but don’t know how to get started or want to improve, make plans to attend one of these events,” said Dan Forster, director of the WRD. “Knowledgeable staff and volunteers will help you have the best time possible and then will encourage you to take the activity beyond this one day.”

In addition to special events all around the state of Georgia, a free fishing day is offered to all Georgia residents on Saturday, Sept. 26. On that day, residents do not need a fishing license or a trout license to fish on any public waters in the state including lakes, rivers, streams, ponds and Public Fishing Areas (PFA). In addition, residents do not need to obtain a wildlife management area (WMA) license to fish on a PFA or WMA.

NHFD is also a great day to get children involved in the outdoors. Some children events planned in the local area are:

• Outdoor Adventure Day for Youth at McDuffie Public Fishing Area. This event on Sept. 26 is for youth 15 and under and activities include a kid’s fishing event, a chance to try out archery, air guns and a Laser Shot hunting simulator. The event will last from 8 a.m. until noon. For more information call Mike Carnell at 706-595-1684. McDuffie Public Fishing Area is located 8 miles east of Thomson.
• Kid’s Fishing Event at Boar Pond at Charlie Elliott Wildlife Center. This fishing event for catfish on Sept. 26 is for kids ages 15 and under. Catfish creel limits apply at this event. You can bring your own bait and tackle or fishing gear will be available for those who need it. The event will last from 8 a.m. to noon. For additional information call Jesse Burnette at 770-784-3063. Charlie Elliott Wildlife Center is located 3 miles south of Mansfield off Highway 11.
• Pond to Plate Family Festival Family Day at the Go Fish Education Center in Perry on Sept. 26. This is an inaugural event at the Go Fish Education Center and attendees will be able to tour the Go Fish Education Center, take part in fun activities like how to cast, handling your catch, knot tying and more. They will even demonstrate how to clean and cook your catch. The Pond to Plate event is free with a paid admission to the facility and will run from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. Call Michael Fulghum at 478-988-6701 for more information on this event.

For additional information about NFHD and all NHFD scheduled events in Georgia, visit the NHFD website at www.nhfday.org and select “events” and then select “Georgia.” Take advantage of all the events on this year’s NHFD and join with other Americans in celebrating the great American outdoors and the traditions of hunting and fishing.

See you next week.