This is the time of year we pause to reflect on our lives and give thanks for all the blessings we’ve received. Despite all the rough times we’ve gone through in recent weeks, we’re still fortunate to be a nation whose blessings are many.
And that includes those among us who hunt and fish.
Perhaps you’ll sit down to dinner tonight and feast on a turkey you harvested yourself. That’s a great feeling, and I’m a little jealous.
Or maybe, instead of standing toe-to-toe with pushy crowds in a stuffy mall, you’ll head out this weekend in search of a jumbo trout the state recently has stocked. You can’t put a price tag on that.
We have so many beautiful places to spend time outdoors. Even though we live in such a densely populated part of the country, none of us is very far from a wonderful wooded escape where you can fish and bask in the joy of nature.
It truly is amazing. For that, we all should be thankful.
But along with that thankfulness, it’s also important to play the role of steward. And for anglers, the state provides a great opportunity to do that when the Division of Fish and Wildlife holds its annual public forum to discuss freshwater fisheries culture, research, management and recreational angling in New Jersey.
This year’s event is scheduled for Dec. 1 at the State Fish Hatchery in Hackettstown. The forum will begin at 10 a.m.
Anglers are invited to share their views and recommendations for the future of freshwater fisheries research and management in New Jersey with staff biologists. Preliminary results of the recently completed trout angler telephone survey, as well as 2012 field sampling results, will be presented.
Most importantly, you’ll have the opportunity to ask questions on any aspect of the division’s fisheries management programs. They take your input seriously, so that means you have a chance to help guide the development of New Jersey’s freshwater programs and the regulations that govern them.
