Leier: April 1 deadline for licenses approaching

Since April 1 marks the new licensing season for angling, general game, habitat, small game and furbearer licenses, it’s a good time to promote the benefits of buying online at the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s Web site: gf.nd.gov.

It’s been nearly 10 years since Game and Fish first offered license sales on its Web site. While I had always enjoyed a sort of nostalgic connection with the annual ritual of filling out the paper form, the reality is that a couple of times I had to struggle to find a license vendor conveniently located on the way to the water on my first fishing trip of the year.

Who hasn’t found themselves on a bright spring day when the stars align and an afternoon opens up for that first outing, but you spend more time looking to buy the license than actually fishing.

A few years ago one of those days materialized, not just for me, but for my wife and kids as well. While my wife was organizing the snacks, hats and jackets, I sat down at the computer and bought our fishing licenses in a matter of minutes, printed them off, and we were out the door and on our way.

Shopping online for licenses doesn’t prevent me from stopping at gas stations, hardware stores and sporting goods retailers. I still need bait and bobbers, a soda and my pork rinds. It’s just that having a license in my pocket already when I head out the door for that first trip of the year means I don’t have to spend any time searching for a license vendor if one is not located on the direct route to my fishing destination.

These days, I should also note that some places that sell paper licenses also provide electronic licensing. It just takes an internet connection and a printer.

In addition to convenience, the choice to purchase license online has a practical side. If you wash, lose or misplace the old yellow fishing license, you have to apply for a duplicate, which costs a few dollars, in addition to the few days it takes to get a new license back in your hands.

Now, if I lose my license I just go back online and print another one. Some people I know print several to start with, so they have a license in their tackle box, vehicle and wallet.

Do I miss some of the connections to fishing routines of the past? Sure, but I’ll trade those for the convenience modern technology allows. And I’d venture to guess that anyone who switches to buying licenses or filling out applications online will never want to go back to the paper way.

Leier, a biologist for the North Dakota Game and Fish Department in West Fargo, can be reached at dleier@nd.gov. Leier’s blog can be found online

at www.areavoices.com