Even when you can’t get out on the water, there are tons of great resources, both paid and free, to help you expand your fishing knowledge. Everything from books, emails, blogs, and YouTube to seminars, online courses, and guided fishing trips.
Although, free content is a great place to start it can be a lot of work to sort through the good content from great content, outdated content, and what isn’t relevant to your style of fishing. You can definitely spend a lot of time spinning your wheels.
Paid content is usually more targeted knowledge but sometimes it can come at a hefty price. You need to weigh if the knowledge you will gain and the amount of time it will save you is worth the price.
No matter if you use free content, or paid content, we always recommend expanding your fishing knowledge. Here are some of our favorite free and paid resources as well as ideas of where you can find more.
Free
Books: Your local library might be a great place to start looking for fishing books and magazine articles. You could also look on your kindle app and audible.
Magazine Articles: Magazines like In-Fisherman, Bassmaster Magazine, BASS, and Anglers Journal usually have helpful tips about rigging, boat mechanics, casting and so much more.
Emails: One of our favorite fishing emails is from TakeMeFishing.org. They share tons of great articles, links, and resources every month. Visit their website and scroll to the bottom of the home page to sign up for their emails.
Blogs: Our GSO Fishing blog has informative articles that we hope you will check out but we also recommend taking the time to read over Karl’s Bait & Tackle Blog. It also has tons of exceptional articles to read over.
Fishing Forums: Use caution when in a fishing forum. There is great information as well as internet trolls hiding in every forum.
Facebook Groups/Communities: Just like Fishing forums, Facebook groups can be both good and bad. We always look for groups with no hate speech/bullying rules and admins that actually enforce those rules. After we join a group we tend to wait/watch for a while to see the type of content that is posted and the comments from other members. It usually doesn’t take very long to see what the dynamics of the groups is and if we want to stay in it.
You can always join our Facebook group GSO Fishing – Tips, Tactics, & Techniques if you are looking for a supportive community of anglers to bounce ideas off of.
Pinterest: You might be surprised to know that Pinterest is also an excellent resource for finding articles and fishing tips. Our Pinterest page has tons of Fishing Related boards filled with topics ranging from fishing tips, what to name your boat, freshwater fish recipes, fishing tattoos and so many more!
Radio Shows:/Podcasts Radio Shows/Podcasts are a great source of information and it’s handy that you can use an app on your phone to listen while you are also working on other tasks like taking a walk, washing the dishes, changing the oil in your car, etc. If you are looking for a podcast app check out Stitcher, Audible, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, or TuneIn Radio.
If you are in Colorado we highly recommend you tune into Terry Wickstrom Outdoors.
TV Shows: There are many, many remarkable TV shows that are extremely helpful to watch. We watch everything from kayak fishing, to the Bassmaster Classic, to Reel Fishing Stories. Check out the Outdoor Channel, The World Fishing Network, and the Sportsman Channel.
YouTube: YouTube, like Fishing Forums and Facebook Groups, can be both good and bad. There is TONS of content out there but you often have to sift through a LOT of it to find what you are looking for. We suggest typing in exactly what you are searching for and then set a timer so that you don’t get sucked in.
Seminars: Check with your local sporting goods store and guide services to see if they are offering any upcoming seminars.
Mentors: Mentors are a great way to get into fishing but be sure to respect their time. Always try to give more than you take. If they offer to take you fishing, you offer to pay for gas. If they offer to take you on their boat, you offer to bring snacks/lunch.
Paid
Books: There are many informative books on the market that sometimes you can’t find at your library or on your Kindle. eBay is also a fantastic resource for getting them at a discounted rate.
Seminars:
– International Sportsman’s Expo (although the seminars don’t cost money, there is an entry fee to attend the show. They host seminars all day and they are well worth the price of the entry fee.)
Local Classes: Check with your local Sporting Goods, Art’s Center, College, Guide Services, and anyone else who may be teaching fishing classes in your area.
Online Courses:
– Skillshare
– Bass University
– Udemy
– GSO Online Courses (Coming Soon!)
Guided Fishing Trips: Guided fishing trips are extremely informative but be sure to check with the Guide Service you want to go fishing with to make sure they offer Instructional fishing trips and that you can ask questions during the trip.
Tournament Fishing: Most people don’t think of tournament fishing when they want to expand their fishing knowledge. Sign up as a co-angler and learn different techniques from different boaters throughout each event. This is a great way to learn from many different anglers and maybe MAKE some money while learning.