This Saturday, September 26, America celebrates its 43rd National Hunting and Fishing Day (NHFD) to honor the commitment of our country’s sportsmen to wildlife conservation and to promote the continued enjoyment of our outdoor heritage for generations to come.
On May 2, 1972, President Richard Nixon signed the first National Hunting and Fishing Day proclamation, declaring, “I urge all our citizens to join with outdoor sportsmen in the wise use of our natural resources and in insuring their proper management for the benefit of future generations.” Since then, we have celebrated NHFD on the fourth Saturday of every September.
“Sportsmen and women play a critically important role in conserving fish and wildlife and their habitats, footing the bill for a vast amount of our country's wildlife conservation and management efforts,” said Chris W. Cox, executive director of the National Rifle Association's Institute for Legislative Action. "The NRA is committed to promoting—as well as protecting—the Second Amendment and our hunting heritage. We encourage all Americans to celebrate these freedoms this Saturday on the 43rd National Hunting and Fishing Day.”
Hunters, anglers and target shooters in the United States contribute nearly $8 million every day to conservation through the purchase of licenses, excise taxes paid on hunting and fishing equipment and ammunition, and contributions to various conservation organizations. Through legislative programs designed to channel these funds back into the conservation process, sportsmen have restored populations of deer, elk, antelope, turkeys and ducks that were dangerously low a century ago to record numbers today.
If you're able to do so, be sure to get out and participate in our great American traditions of hunting and fishing tomorrow, and please take this opportunity to introduce a newcomer to the outdoors. Be sure to check your local listings for family friendly events in your area.
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