Mississippi
It’s time to go fishing and camping. New fees, permit structures at MS state lakes
‘Hopefully, this will make it much simpler when people pull up to signs and try to figure out which permits you need.’
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- The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks has simplified its fee structure for state lakes, reducing the number of permits from 20 to 13.
- The new fees, which include guests for annual permits, mark the first increase in fishing and boating fees in 20 years.
- Daily permits for fishing without boat launching are $5, while those including boat launching and skiing are $9.
Spring is fast approaching and with warmer weather, a lot of people are thinking about camping and fishing. If you decide to camp and fish at one of Mississippi’s state lakes, you may notice a change in the fees.
“Basically, we simplified the permits,” said Jerry Brown, Fisheries director at the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. “Where we used to have maybe 20 permits, we reduced it down to 13.”
State lakes offer a variety of opportunities beyond just fishing. Camping, skiing, pavilion rentals and other activities are offered at them. Some of the fees have been increased this year.
“It is probably worth noting that it has been 20 years since we went up on any fishing and boating fees,” Brown said.
Some fees have simply been restructured. Previously, a person with an annual boating, fishing and skiing permit was required to pay extra for a guest. While the fee of that permit has been increased, it now includes guests.
“Hopefully, this will make it much simpler when people pull up to signs and try to figure out which permits you need,” Brown said.
What are the fees at Mississippi state lakes?
Daily permits
- Youth fishing ages 15 and under: Free
- Fishing, no boat launching: $5
- Boat launching, fishing, skiing: $9
Annual permits
- Boat launching, fishing, skiing ages 16-61: $125
- Exempt boat launching, fishing, skiing: $100
- Fishing, no boat launching: $55
- Exempt fishing permit, no boat launching: $35
Camping and pavilion rental permits
- Camping, one day, ages 21-61: $25 *
- Exempt camping, one day: $22 *
- Camping, 30 days, ages 21-61: $500 *
- Exempt camping, 30 days: $360 *
- Primitive tent camping, one day, no electricity: $20
- Pavilion rental, one day: $53, reservations required
Exempt permits are for persons ages 62 or older, 100% disabled, active service members or military veterans.
* These camping permits include fishing and boat launching for registered campers not to exceed eight people.
Do you have a story idea? Contact Brian Broom at 601-961-7225 or bbroom@gannett.com.