New to fishing? Start here
Fishing for Beginners: Your First Day, From License to First Fish
Fishing for beginners, step by step: the $65–80 starter kit, who needs a license, where to go, the bobber rig, the cast, the bite and the rules.
fishing.info
Fishing, explained properly.
Find the fish, choose what to throw and know your gear. Every page is researched from the sources and written for the angler who has to use it on the water.
Free PDF · Water temperature chart Which fish are biting at today's water temperature?
One reading, and the 16-page chart shows which of 26 fish are spawning, feeding hard or slowing down; for bass, crappie, bluegill and walleye, where they sit and what to throw. Every number sourced.
No card, nothing to buy, and the PDF is yours to keep. Confirm with one click and it's on its way. Then a few short emails and one a week on what's biting. Unsubscribe anytime. Privacy.
Species
Which fish do you want to catch?
Every fish worth chasing: how to identify it, where it lives, when it bites.
Techniques
How do you fish for it?
Rigs, knots, casting, and the disciplines from fly to ice to surf.
Lures
What do you throw?
Crankbaits to soft plastics: how each one works and when to throw it.
Bait
What bait do you use?
Live, cut and prepared bait, how to rig it and how to keep it.
Gear
What gear do you need?
Rods, reels, line, hooks and electronics, compared on the numbers.
States
What are the rules where you fish?
Licenses, seasons and the best water, state by state.
Four guides that answer the big questions
Where the bass are, what the water temperature says, which lures to buy first, and what the words mean.
species
How to Fish for Bass: A Beginner's Season-by-Season Guide
How to fish for bass from the first cast: one rod and reel, five lures, where bass are at each water temperature, and a step-by-step plan for day one.
techniques
Ideal Water Temperature for Fish: The Chart for 26 Freshwater Species
The best water temperature for fishing is 65–75 °F for most freshwater fish; trout want 50–65 °F, catfish 75–85 °F. One chart for 26 species.
lures
Best Fishing Lures: The Ten to Buy First, by What Each One Does
The best fishing lures for a first box: ten that cover every season and depth, what the pros threw in 2025, a season table, a species table and colors.
techniques
Fishing Terms: 690+ Words, Slang and Acronyms Anglers Use
Fishing terms and slang, A to Z: 690+ words in plain English, from bail and drag to hawg, dink and honey hole, plus 32 acronyms anglers use.
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gear
13 Fishing Rods and Reels: The Main Lines by Price, and Which to Buy
13 Fishing rods from the $65.99 Defy to the $199.99 Myth, and the SHYFT, Slate and Concept reels: specs from 13 Fishing's own charts, and which to buy.
gear
Daiwa Tatula Reels: Tatula 100, SV, X and Elite Compared
Every standard Daiwa Tatula casting reel on price, drag, weight and spool, from the $150 Tatula X to the $350 Tatula 300, and which one to buy for bass.
species
Smallmouth Bass Lures: 7 Picks and When to Throw Each
The best smallmouth bass lures by season: a Ned rig first, then a tube, a jerkbait and a drop shot, with the size, weight and color for each.
species
Is a Shark a Fish? Yes, and Why It Isn't a Mammal
Is a shark a fish? Yes: it breathes with gills and is built of cartilage, not bone. How sharks differ, why they aren't mammals, and seahorses and eels.
species
Grouper: The Seven Types, the Rules and How to Catch One
Grouper fish: gag, red, black, scamp, Warsaw, Nassau and goliath. How to tell them apart, the size, bag and season rules by coast, and how to catch one.
species
Goliath Grouper: Size, Record, the Rules and How to Catch One
Goliath grouper reach 8 ft and 800 lb. The 680 lb record, how to tell one apart, Florida's harvest lottery, slot-fish tackle and how to release a giant.
species
Alewife: How to Identify It, Where It Runs and Why Anglers Care
The alewife is a small silver herring: sea-run on the Atlantic, landlocked in the Great Lakes. How to ID one, where it runs, and where you can keep it.
species
Candiru: The Amazon's Vampire Catfish and the Urethra Myth
The candiru is a tiny see-through Amazon catfish that drinks blood from fish gills. What it really does, its size, and the urethra story checked.
How fishing.info works
- One answer per question. Every page is written to be the best answer to the question in its title: where the fish are, what to throw, which rod, what the rules say.
- Researched, then written for you. Every article starts with the people who know: state fish and wildlife agencies, record keepers, the makers' own numbers and the anglers who fish for a living. The sources sit at the bottom of every page; the explanation of what it means for you is ours.
- Honest about how it is made. Research-driven, drafted with AI assistance, reviewed before it goes live, and edited by an angler who has fished since he was a boy. We never claim tests we have not done. About this site and its author.