A bargain at twice the cost

With the exception of gasoline, the price of nearly everything else appears to be on the rise.

The Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks recently announced changes in license fees, and not surprisingly, it will cost a few more bucks to fish and hunt here this year. Not a lot, though. Resident fishing licenses will increase by $3, and hunters must now purchase a new base hunting license before they can buy any other state hunting license.

Folks may grumble a bit about the higher cost, but it’s still a good deal.

When I first arrived in Montana I couldn’t afford a fishing license. I can’t remember what a nonresident license cost in 1970, but it was beyond my means.

I was 18 and working for an outfitter in Cooke City. All I could do was watch while everybody else caught fish. I tended camp, wrangled horses, and cooked, but I couldn’t cast a line.

On the second trip of the summer we packed in a family with a couple of young kids to a camp on Copeland Lake. Midway through the trip, one of the little girls got hooked in the head with a fly. I’d never before removed a fishhook from someone’s scalp, but I’d always been an avid reader of outdoor how-to books, and volunteered to give it a try.

Back then I could still remember what I read and my hook removal process was textbook, along with being almost painless.

The family was very grateful, and at the end of the trip, tipped me enough to buy a fishing license.

I haven’t been without one since.

It didn’t matter the cost. Fishing and hunting licenses became top priority. They were -- and will always remain --a good deal. Now, apparently, I’ve hung around long enough that my fishing license is free. They are for all residents 62 years of age and older although an $8 conservation license is still required.

FWP also offers a number of deals for kids and young folks 17 and under, but there’s still no bargains for 18-year-olds.

I suppose there don’t need to be any. Kids that age must decide what their priorities are. Hopefully, hunting and fishing and paying their own way are near the top of the list.

The opportunity to hunt and fish in Montana would still be a bargain at twice the cost.

And if the price of a license is still out of reach, learn to remove fish hooks from small children. The tips are great and you’ll be hooked for a lifetime.

Parker Heinlein is at

[email protected]