This weekend is one of those rare deals where the barrier to entry just disappears. New Mexico is opening its public waters to anglers of all ages on Saturday, Sept. 26, and Sunday, Sept. 27, no fishing license required. You can read the details in the original announcement, but the short version is simple: grab a rod, find water, fish.

I love these weekends because they're the fishing equivalent of a trailhead with no permit line. The outdoors belong to everybody, and this is one of the few times the state actually puts its money where its mouth is on that. If you've been curious about fishing but never wanted to drop license money on a hobby you might hate, this is your lab experiment. Costs you gas and bait, that's it.

A few things to know before you go. Free means the license requirement is waived, not every rule. You still need to follow bag limits, size limits, and whatever special regulations apply to the specific water you're fishing. Some stretches of New Mexico rivers and streams have seasonal closures or single-barbless-hook rules, so give your water a quick check before you cast. Five minutes of reading that keeps you from a conversation you don't want to have with a game warden.

Also, and I say this as someone who has forgotten gear in ways that still haunt me, check your line before you leave the house. I once drove two hours to a lake with a reel whose drag had frozen sometime over the winter and spent the whole morning hand-lining fish like a caveman. Don't be me. Fresh line, hooks sharpened, cooler with ice. The basics.

Where to go? New Mexico is sneakily good fishing. The Rio Grande through the northern part of the state, the San Juan below Navajo Dam for world-class trout water (that one gets crowded, fair warning), Eagle Nest Lake up near the Moreno Valley, and the string of lakes around Elephant Butte if you're chasing warmwater fish. Late September is a genuine sweet spot: summer heat backing off, trout getting active again, and the fall colors up north just starting to turn. You might catch fish under cottonwoods going gold. There are worse ways to spend a Saturday.

If you're taking kids, keep expectations low and snacks high. The math on a successful first fishing trip is about one fish per hour of patience, maximum. Let them throw rocks if the bobber sits still too long. A kid who has fun catching nothing will come back. A kid drilled on technique for six fishless hours will not.

One more note: even though the license fee is waived this weekend, license sales are what fund fisheries management in the state, so if you get hooked, buy the license next time. Cheapest conservation donation you'll ever make, and it comes with fishing attached.

Free fishing runs Saturday and Sunday only. After that, it's back to normal rules. The weather looks like fall is cooperating, the fish don't know the difference, and there's water with your name on it somewhere in that state. Go find out if you're a fishing person. It's free to find out.