Brookfield, Vt. – Nathan Brien, 25, of Brookfield, VT likes to go fishing, but he's never fished from a kayak before. That changed May 19 when the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department drew a winner for a new L.L. Bean "Manitou" Angler Kayak donated by the Freeport, ME, retailer.

Nathan became the lucky winner of the kayak by purchasing his hunting and fishing licenses on Fish & Wildlife's website (vtfishandwildlife.com). He was one of more than 24,000 people who were automatically entered into the kayak lottery that began in December.

"I usually fish on Rood Pond or from the Floating Bridge," said Brien. "It'll be really sweet to try the kayak out on Sunset Lake."

Vermont Fish & Wildlife created the kayak lottery to improve customer service and as an efficiency measure to encourage license buyers to use the website when buying licenses.

"Buying your hunting or fishing license online is easy, quick, and you can immediately go hunting or fishing after purchasing your license," said Fish & Wildlife Commissioner Louis Porter. "Online licenses are more convenient for anglers and hunters, they help keep our department operational costs down, and they are easy to replace if lost."

Porter also notes that license sales in Vermont leverage federal funds that support the department's wildlife and fish conservation efforts and protect open spaces for all Vermonters to enjoy.

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Media Contact: Susan Warner 802-595-2470