Anybody Ever Get Caught Without Their License?

[hawgenvy]

My fairly expensive current active Florida freshwater/saltwater/snook license expires in February 2020, about 3 weeks before I turn 65, at which point I will no longer need a license. I'm already debating with myself whether to renew then or take my chances. I've had a valid state fishing license for over 45 years and no one has ever asked to see it.

[Glaucus]

I would never put myself in that position in Illinois. This state bends order backwards to fine citizens and steal property to sell for the state. There would be no understanding on the part of these officers as far as accepting that you have a license but forgot to have it on you.

[A-Jay]

24 minutes ago, hawgenvy said:

My fairly expensive current active Florida freshwater/saltwater/snook license expires in February 2020, about 3 weeks before I turn 65, at which point I will no longer need a license. I'm already debating with myself whether to renew then or take my chances. I've had a valid state fishing license for over 45 years and no one has ever asked to see it.

 Well, Dang it - I want to see it - and right now ! 

Happy Birthday too.

A-Jay

 

[Big Mike in Fl]

Some years back I was fishing the Indian river lagoon system here (brackish water) when I happened to see two guys wade fishing I. A spot where my cousin and I used to wade fish as a kid, as I got closer low and behold it was my cousin, with a buddy of his. Well of course I invited them to climb aboard and we went off and fished, about an hour later an FWC officer cane tooling along and checked us all, both of them got tickets as they only had shore bound licenses. 

    Fast forward to a couple weeks ago, same cousin who now lives out of state is in town visiting and we head out to fish, he of course made sure to get a license. So we’re at a ramp waiting in a thunderstorm to make up its mind where it’s going go, and a sheriffs wildlife deputy pulls up. We proceeded to BS with him for about ten minutes before he headed off to continue patrol. My cousin was ticked he didn’t check his license, I said you know he would have checked us if you didn’t buy one! 

 

   Another time some years ago, I was out with my buddy on Garcia when we headed back to the ramp we could see the FWC officers doing spot checks at the ramp. At that very moment it occurred to me that my license might have expired. I convinced my buddy to cruise on by the ramp and head back out to the lake, sure enough I was expired. So I called the number on the back of the license and renewed it in the water. Got back to the ramp and got spot checked, officer asked me when I had renewed it and I told him that morning... trouble averted! 

 

I got in some one serious trouble with wildlife when I was younger, I try my best to behave myself these days. I enjoy the outdoors too much to risk it, and while the first time was a slap on the wrist, I know the second won’t be. 

[Mhan7]

On 11/24/2014 at 7:00 PM, Paul Roberts said:

There's an old saying. (I say it's old bc I'm old lol.) It goes something like this: "There may be only a handful of CO's (Conservation Officers) in the state. But if you are in the wrong they have a way of being there." It can be uncanny.

Here in Florida, it's a whole different ballgame.  There's A LOT of FWC (Florida Wildlife Commission) officers. And they are always where they're needed.  It's not uncanny.  They're mobilized.  Like a little army.  There are some places where I have fished, that I've literally been asked for my license, every single time that I've been there.  Usually by a plain clothes officer.

 

That being said, I'm just not sure why anyone in this day and age is still required to carry a physical copy of their license.  I mean...  You're already on file.  You know d**n well they run a check on your license, to make sure that it's real. So what's the point?  You are engaging in activities in, on, or next to, water, for God's sake.  And it's a piece of paper.  And the paper that they give us, even if it never sees the sun, seems to fade into unintelligible oblivion, before it's even expired.

 

1 hour ago, hawgenvy said:

My fairly expensive current active Florida freshwater/saltwater/snook license 

You live in Boca, and consider that expensive?  Maybe I have my stereotypes all wrong...

 

That is what I call seriously cheap entertainment.  It's definitely cheaper than putting tags on a second car or motorcycle. 

[Mhan7]

On 6/29/2019 at 10:07 AM, A-Jay said:

What may be equally as 'sad' is when people conduct themselves in a manner that elicits that type of response from the brave men & women who chose to protect us and put their life on the line every minute of their entire work day (and night) for total strangers.

A-Jay

Maybe even more sad is that there are people who tow that very same line, day in and day out, choosing to overlook every transgression committed by the police who are actually bad.  Not all people who do the job are protecting us, and certainly not all are brave.

 

Let's not put our heads in the sand.  Every profession - every single last one - has mediocrity in its ranks.  When we put an entire class of people up on a pedestal, and choose hero worship over accountability, we allow their mediocrity to become the norm.  Their bad gets badder.  We definitely have issues amongst the citizenry - but it we're being honest with ourselves, we have a police problem, too.  One is not better or worse than the other.

 

My little town that I grew up, recently voted to disband the local police department.  They were more trouble than they were worth.  They were definitely not "brave men and women".  They were just people doing a job. Sort of.

[AlTheFisherman313]

3 hours ago, schplurg said:

These people do not care about the fisheries, they just bring a bucket so they can feed themselves and their families. Some use strings of treble hooks to snag them off beds.

 

We've all seen 'em and we can spot 'em a mile away. So can the authorities. People that do this and litter are not fishermen or anglers, they are 100% douchebags (or pick your favorite term).

That’s a fair point. I really don’t keep anything I catch unless it’s a legal walleye. At least in my normal fishing grounds. I guess it’s a predicament I hope to never be in fishing to feed my family, but I couldn’t imagine eating a 15 pound carp.... yuck! Even a big catfish usually tastes awful. The best catfish are the barely legal ones. 

 

As far as the guys who are keeping things for the sake of keeping what you catch we can roll with douchebags haha. I literally wanna throw their poles on the ground and jump on them. 

 

I mean for f*** sake I feel bad foul hooking a fish even on topwater, I could never keep a dink. I want him to remember he was caught till he hits 5+ pounds and than he can forget about it and come jump on my line haha. 

[ike8120]

I wish there were more CO in NJ, people will take a fish the size of a guppy and most don't even have a license. In this day and age I don't like to confront any one about a license, since you could possibly lose your life over it.

I am 70 and in NJ you are exempt from the trout stamp and license, you just need proof of age. 

[Cgolf]

I have never fished without it. I carry the paper copy in my river bag, and we paid to get the credit card style license in WI that I carry in my boat or wallet.

 

I will say the DNR really annoyed me one time they did a boat check on the water. I had my fishing license on me that day, so no problem, but I didn't have my wallet with my drivers license which was almost a problem. They ultimately were fine, but it was a good reminder to have your DL with you as well.

[Rip_lipz]

I have been checked, even at the high volume fishing areas. Guess I am lucky? I buy my license every single year no matter what. I don't see why people try to get away with it. I live in CT and for all waters I think its 65 dollars. That's a whole lot better than losing 5000 in fishing gear, not counting the boat. I know this topic is on fishing licenses. But, if your a younger guy and plan on buying a boat in the future or already have one. Do you self a favor, make sure you have ALL the required safety equipment/licenses. 

[Paul Roberts]

12 hours ago, Mhan7 said:

Here in Florida, it's a whole different ballgame.  There's A LOT of FWC (Florida Wildlife Commission) officers. And they are always where they're needed.  It's not uncanny.  They're mobilized.  Like a little army.  There are some places where I have fished, that I've literally been asked for my license, every single time that I've been there.  Usually by a plain clothes officer.

 

That being said, I'm just not sure why anyone in this day and age is still required to carry a physical copy of their license.  I mean...  You're already on file.  You know d**n well they run a check on your license, to make sure that it's real. So what's the point?  You are engaging in activities in, on, or next to, water, for God's sake.  And it's a piece of paper.  And the paper that they give us, even if it never sees the sun, seems to fade into unintelligible oblivion, before it's even expired.

 

You live in Boca, and consider that expensive?  Maybe I have my stereotypes all wrong...

 

That is what I call seriously cheap entertainment.  It's definitely cheaper than putting tags on a second car or motorcycle. 

Many F&W agencies are under-funded. That was the case with NYS, when I lived there. It's certainly the case here in CO, where I now live; At least for the warmwater program.

[Choporoz]

I"m with @schplurg.  Check my license.  Please.

 

Between State and county officials, the waters I fish are pretty heavily patrolled.  I used to get checked frequently.

 

For some reason this year, the four of the last eight times I was out, I was passed by officials without being checked.    Must be the Hobie...  

[DogBone_384]

Nope. Massachusetts has a “sporting license” that covers hunting and fishing. Archery, black powder, and salt water are add ons.  Mass licenses are January 01 to December 31.

 

It’s all done on line. I keep a digital copy on my phone and print deer tags come hunting season.

[Mhan7]

31 minutes ago, Paul Roberts said:

Many F&W agencies are under-funded. That was the case with NYS, when I lived there. It's certainly the case here in CO, where I now live; At least for the warmwater program.

Yes sir, no doubt about this.  The case is that here, we make a ton of money off of people coming to fish.  It's a huge revenue generator.  So, the case for the officers is well defined here...  

[BassThumb]

A few times on the ice. They just look up your name and drivers license number to see that you're licensed. Now the MN DNR has a licensing app so you can bring up licenses on your phone or print off as many copies as you'd like.

[Mhan7]

22 minutes ago, BassThumb said:

A few times on the ice. They just look up your name and drivers license number to see that you're licensed. Now the MN DNR has a licensing app so you can bring up licenses on your phone or print off as many copies as you'd like.

That's awesome.  The other process is stupid and archaic.  Glad to see that all those taxes you guys pay up there are working for something good.  Better than all those roads to nowhere. 

 

[BassThumb]

20 hours ago, Mhan7 said:

That's awesome.  The other process is stupid and archaic.  Glad to see that all those taxes you guys pay up there are working for something good.  Better than all those roads to nowhere. 

 

Those roads all lead to lakes and rivers.

[boostr]

On 7/3/2019 at 5:33 AM, ike8120 said:

I wish there were more CO in NJ, people will take a fish the size of a guppy and most don't even have a license. In this day and age I don't like to confront any one about a license, since you could possibly lose your life over it.

I am 70 and in NJ you are exempt from the trout stamp and license, you just need proof of age. 

Yep, I see them at every body of water I go to. Even when it's a catch and release only lake, they still take them. Oh and God forbid you forget YOUR license, and your the one they check.

[whitwolf]

I haven't been checked in years. I know all the wildlife folks on a first name basis. It makes no difference they are friends, they have a job to do.  I buy my license each year and would never strain those friendships. 

 

I will leave the sub topic be, other than to say @A-Jay stated my thoughts to a tee.

[Topwaterdog]

On 7/2/2019 at 4:02 PM, jbsoonerfan said:

You should consider getting your lifetime hunting/fishing license before they go up or they do away with them all together. Best investment I have made when it comes to hunting and fishing.

I would but I don't plan on being here for the rest of my life. Okie born and raised -I've done my time here and soon I'll be on to the next phase of the journey, god willing. 

[Dwight Hottle]

I have been caught without my license three times left in my wallet back at camp while fishing in Canada. Each time the officer followed me back to camp to verify I had one. What a waste of time. Now I take a picture of my license on my phone in case I ever forget my wallet again.  

[senile1]

Missouri has both "MO Fishing" and "MO Hunting" apps that one can download to phones.  Access the section of each app for permits and enter one's conservation number and birth date to allow the apps to display permits.  Each app displays both hunting and fishing permits.  If you have your phone and just one of the apps you can present your permits to anyone who asks.  However, I still carry my paper copies.  

[Sphynx]

I ended up getting caught without my license on me in TX when I was stationed at Ft. Hood, I had a license, but it was not on me, it had somehow not made it back into my tackle box after I organized it, I was cited but upon presenting my license it was dismissed and cost me an afternoon of fishing and a smirk from the judge telling me that this sort of thing happened all the time, that I wasn't a criminal, and that he had no interest in throwing the book at a fella who had made an honest mistake, the only other time I can recall any interaction with a Game Warden about fishing was fishing for Redfish near Port Arthur on the Louisiana coast, and he was no bother to me as he was checking to verify fish that were being kept were proper size, and we were not keeping what we caught.

[deadadrift89]

Fishing a small lake this warden pulls down to shore and starts yelling and waving at us. We go over and he ask for me by name. He said I ran your plate in parking lot on truck and your license expired a couple of days ago?. He said I want your drivers license and you can get it back at office after you get your fishing license renewed instead of a ticket. I told him how about I get on my phone right now and renew online, he allowed it and we finished the day out. 

[redmexican5081]

I've been stopped 3 times in freshwater and just about every trip in the ocean.  The only time I was without was when I was 14.  We took a trip to China Lake in Maine.  I asked at the local bait shop if I needed a license and was told "no because you are under 16".  My buddy and I fished all week out a a canoe catching and releasing white perch by the 100s.  The last day of our trip the warden came out to see us.  He had been watching us all week from his porch.  Asked us about life jackets and safety equipment, then asked where we were from and for our licenses.  We told him the guy at the bait shop told us we didn't need one because we were under 16, the warden told us that non-residents needed one if you were over 12.  We pleaded our case, he followed us on our bikes to the bait shop and we talked with the guy behind the counter who confirmed we had asked about needing a license earlier in the week and were told we didn't need one.  The warden let us off with a written warning and informed the bait shop guy that he needed to brush up on his regulations and make sure to ask if the kids under 16 but over 12 are from out of state when vacationers stop in asking about licenses.