Anglers may be hard-pressed to find gear for free fishing weekend

Saskatchewan anglers can fish for free this weekend.

On Saturday and Sunday, residents and visitors can fish in any of Saskatchewan’s public waters open to sport fishing without a licence.

However, if you need some new gear before hitting the water, you could be out of luck, according to Saskatoon Fishin’ Hole manager Brian Dygdala.

Dygdala said with more people fishing during the COVID-19 pandemic, equipment supplies have dwindled with distributors closed or operating at reduced capacity.

“It’s been tough,” he said. “You come looking at some of our shelves (and) our rods and reels have been picked through pretty good.

“We might not see our regular inventories until August. I know some stuff might not become available for summer fishing until October (or) November.”

There are plenty of lakes close to Saskatoon for those wanting to try fishing for the first time, including Lake Diefenbaker.

“One advantage to fishing Lake Diefenbaker is you don’t need a boat. You can be fairly successful fishing off the shorelines,” said Dygdala.

During the free fishing weekend, all other fishing regulations remain in effect. As well, anglers must respect current public health orders.