Illinois’ Free Fishing Days Going On This Weekend

Just in time for Father's Day, you can go fishing with Pops for free in Illinois.

A weekend after Iowa DNR hosted their Free Fishing Weekend, Illinois is doing the same.

Illinois Department of Natural Resources is hosting Free Fishing Weekend June 14th-17th. If you live in Illinois, you can go fishing this weekend without a license, salmon stamp, or an inland trout stamp.

The date coincides with June 16th, which is National Go Fishing Day and of course lines up with Father's Day.

Around Illinois, several events will be going on for Free Fishing Weekend. In Fox Lake, there will be a Father’s Day Fishing Frenzy that will be at Lakefront Park from 9:00 a.m. to noon on Saturday. Over in Bolingbrook, Will County's Hidden Lakes Trout Farm is doing a 3-day event, with giveaways, free containers of bait, and desserts and treats for fishers on Sunday.

If you figure out that you enjoy fishing over the weekend, you can get a license on Illinois DNR's website. If you're over 16, you can get a fishing license for $15 and it will remain valid through March 2025. But if your kiddo likes to fish, you won't have to spend money. If your kid is under 16, they don't need a license to fish in Illinois.

You can get safety tips before you head out for Free Fishing Weekend at this link. Of course, whatever you want to catch will determine where you go fish this weekend so get more details about Illinois' fish at the DNR's website.