Anglers are no doubt staking out their favorite spots with the official start of fishing season less than one day away.

Much to the delight of fishermen, opening day of trout season kicks off at 8 a.m. Saturday in Carbon, Monroe and other counties throughout the state.That means routine sightings of fishing poles, tackle boxes and fishing gear as anglers go all out to make that big catch to land their trophy.Since mid-February, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission has been busy stocking waterways with a fresh supply of brook, brown and rainbow trout.With about 3.2 million adult trout stocked in lakes and creeks, along with more than 10,000 miles of wild trout waters, anglers have plenty of opportunities to catch a stocked or wild trout.The Great OutdoorsAfter the unusually cold winter, fish commission executive director John Arway thinks anglers will be more excited than ever to get outside and spend time with friends and family and enjoy trout fishing."I visited Opossum Lake in Cumberland County and Holman Lake in Perry County on the regional opening day and talked to dozens of anglers as part of our 'Angler Thank You Campaign,' " Arway said. "As we thought, they were as anxious as I was to be outdoors and fishing."They were also surprised to see me and my staff out on this day, asking them about their luck and experiences and thanking them for purchasing a fishing license," he added. "We felt it was important to join in the fun on this day to let our customers know that we appreciate their business."More than 50 fish and boat commission staff visited dozens of waters in the 18 counties in the southeastern region that make up the March 29 regional opening day. As part of the campaign, multiple area businesses provided free coffee and other beverages to anglers who showed their fishing licenses. The commission estimates that staff spoke to more than 1,500 customers during the day.Statewide Mentored Youth Fishing DayOn May 10, the commission will host the statewide Mentored Youth Fishing Day on 41 waters. To participate, adult anglers (16 years or older) must have a valid fishing license and trout/salmon permit and be accompanied by a youth under the age of 16. Youth anglers must obtain a free Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission-issued permit or purchase a low-cost, voluntary youth fishing license.So far, the commission has sold almost 900 voluntary youth fishing licenses, and nearly 1,500 youth anglers have obtained a free permit for the Mentored Youth Day. Both are available at

www.GoneFishingPA.com, or at any of the more than 900 licensing agents across the state.To ensure that plenty of the stocked trout are available to anglers on the mentored youth day, the waters will be closed to all fishing from noon May 9 until 8 a.m. on May 10. The waters will be open on May 10 only for mentored youth day participants from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and anglers may keep two trout. After 7:30 p.m. the waters will be open to all anglers.Cost of fishinglicensesThe 2014 season marks the second year anglers can purchase multiyear fishing licenses, including a resident three-year license for $64.70 or a resident five-year license for $106.70. Resident three-year and five-year trout permits cost $25.70 and $41.70.A one-year resident fishing license costs $22.70, and a trout-salmon permit is $9.70. A license is required for anyone 16 and older and a trout permit is required for trout fishing in all wild and stocked trout waters. Licenses can be purchased at sporting goods stores and online at

www.gonefishingpa.com.Visit the trout page for more information about trout season.Fishing license salesThe fish and boat commission sells approximately 850,000 fishing licenses each year. Through the end of March, license sales are up by about 1 percent.Kathy Keller, assistant manager at Dunkelberger's Sports Outfitter in Brodheadsville, said she believes interest in fishing is on the uptick.Keller noted that the Brodheadsville store, which opened last August, is busy with fishing licenses sales."Our Stroudsburg area has always done well; we seem to be doing quite well for ourselves," Keller said. "We do get a lot of customers coming from the southern tier counties purchasing their fishing licenses. In the next two weeks, I'm sure we're going to be inundated with the sale of fishing licenses and apparel here in Monroe County."Keller said it seems to her that fishing is about to make a rebound."I would definitely say it's on the rise; there are a lot of people getting back to the basics, including hunting and fishing," she said. "It's an inexpensive way to participate in a family activity."Not so at Shea's Hardware Inc., in Palmerton, where sporting goods manager Jeff Miller said the sale of fishing licenses has lagged."We probably (only sold) close to half as many as usual," Miller said. "(That's likely due to) the weather, that's the biggest thing."On the whole, Miller said he's noticed a decrease in the level of interest in the sport."It's been trending downward; interest has been declining," he said. "Some of it is probably just family values; it used to be everybody in the house used to go fishing, and I certainly don't think that's the case anymore."At AF Boyer Hardware & Guns in Slatington, the sale of fishing licenses has remained fairly steady, said Debbie Boyer.