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.
It costs you one email address. 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.
Start with Best Catfish Bait.
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.
Latest
gear
Depth Finder for a Boat: Which Unit, and Where the Transducer Goes
The best boat depth fish finder is a $120–200 sonar, not a dash gauge. The picks by boat, and the makers' rules for where the transducer goes.
species
Walking Catfish: The Florida Invader That Crosses Land, and the Law on It
Walking catfish: an air-breathing Asian catfish loose in Florida since the 1960s. How it crosses land, its 2 lb 10 oz record, and why live ones are banned.
species
Walleye Fishing: How to Catch Walleye in Every Season
Walleye fishing by season: where they sit, which jig, rig or crankbait to use, how deep and how fast, plus night, shore and ice.
techniques
Loop Knot: How to Tie the Non-Slip Loop and the Rapala Knot
A loop knot leaves a small fixed loop so the lure swings free. How to tie Kreh's non-slip loop (83% in a pull test) and the Rapala knot, and which wins.
gear
Ugly Stik Rods: GX2, Elite, Carbon and the Rest, and the 10-Year Warranty
Ugly Stik rods from the $25 Dock Runner to the $230 Bigwater stand-up: every series and price, what the Clear Tip does, which to buy, and the warranty.
species
Arctic Char: How to Identify, Where to Catch and Is It Good to Eat
Arctic char, the most northerly freshwater fish: how to tell it from a Dolly Varden, where US anglers catch it, the record, and how it eats.
species
Trout Magnet: How to Rig and Fish the 1/64 oz Jig and Float
Trout Magnet rigging step by step: the 1/64 oz jig under the E-Z float, how deep to set it, the twitch, 2 lb line, colors, and what a rigged lure costs.
techniques
Arbor Knot: How to Tie Line to a Reel Spool (and Why Braid Slips)
How to tie the arbor knot on a spinning, baitcast, spincast or fly reel, why it slips on braid, and the backing or tape that stops it.
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.