Gifts especially for the hunter or angler

As Christmas gets closer and closer, we begin to buy gifts for our friends and loved ones. Some people seem to be easy to buy for but some are downright hard. Hopefully some of these suggestions will help you buy for the hunter or fisher on your shopping list. All of the licenses listed are for Missouri.

Probably at the top of my list would be a license to fish or hunt or both hunt and fish. This can be a one-year license or even a lifetime permit. The resident hunting and fishing permit will cost you $19. Fishing alone is $12, and the small-game hunting permit is $10. Most sportsmen or sportswomen who fish usually hunt as well. At $19 the combination hunt/fish is a bargain. If you are buying a permit for a nonresident, then the cost of the permits will be higher. The nonresident fishing permit will be $42, and the nonresident hunting permit will be $80.

If you really want to make Christmas special, give a lifetime permit. A lifetime small-game hunting permit for those age 15 and younger will cost $275 for either the hunting or the fishing permit. A combination hunting and fishing permit for those 15 and under will cost $550.

For those whose age is 60 to 64, the cost for a small-game hunting lifetime permit or a lifetime fishing permit is $35. The cost for a lifetime combination hunting and fishing permit is $70. When I turned 60 several years ago, I bought a lifetime combination hunting and fishing permit and it cost me $70. Last permit I will have to buy. The only other permit I would have to buy is a federal duck stamp if I hunt ducks.

If the one you are wanting to buy the lifetime permit is still 15 or younger, now is the time. The cost of the lifetime fishing or small-game hunting permit for those 15 or under is $275. But, when they turn 16, the cost goes up to $400 for either one of the two. The combination small-game hunting and fishing permit for those 15 or under is $550, but when they turn 16 the price increases to $800.

The lifetime small-game hunting permit carries the same privileges as the resident small-game hunting permit, the migratory bird hunting permit and conservation order permit. To hunt deer or turkey, you will need a special permit, which is not included. To hunt duck, you will need a federal duck stamp. The lifetime fishing permit carries the same privileges as the resident fishing permit as well as the trout permit.

One thing about the lifetime permits is that they include extra benefits. The lifetime small-game hunting permit includes the migratory bird hunting permit, which costs $6 a year, as well as the conservation order permit, which costs $5 a year. The lifetime fishing permit includes the trout permit, which costs $3.50 for those 15 years old or younger or $7 for those 16 and older.

The easiest way to buy a yearly permit is online at mdc.mo.gov/permits. If you want to buy a lifetime permit you will need to fill out a special form that can be located at mdc.mo.gov/sites/default/files/resources/2010/06/lifetime2014.pdf. This form will have to be filled out and then sent to the Missouri Department of Conservation at Jefferson City.

Make Christmas special for your outdoorsman or outdoorswoman.