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Fishing: everything you ever wanted to know

River photo by Ian Britton

Another lovely river photo by Ian Britton, courtesy of Freefoto.com.

Fishing is one of our top sports and pastimes. There are over 4 million anglers in the UK and some 34 million people fish in the United States each year. Anglers don't just enjoy themselves: they are at the front-line of river conservation. They have an interest in keeping rivers clean, well-stocked, and non-polluted.

If you don't know anything about fishing, you might wonder where to start: fishing can seem like a mysterious, priestly art that you need years to master. Nothing is further from the truth: you can start fishing in a weekend—this weekend, next weekend, or any weekend. It's simple! Start here with our comprehensive list of web pages covering every aspect of fishing. Get yourself outside and enjoy your rivers—give them another reason to stay fantastic!

Last updated: 22 February 2008.

Contents: what's on this page?

Start here: Introductions and beginners' guides

General introductions and overviews from online encyclopedias

Practical beginners' guides

Get hooked on fishing logo

Fishing for kids and families

For younger children

For older children

For parents

Official information

Where to go fishing in your area?

General

Fishing in England

Fishing in Wales

Fishing in Scotland

Fishing in Northern Ireland

Fishing in Ireland

Fishing in North America

Fish

Fly fishing

Magazines and newspapers

UK

US

Books and DVDs

If you like fishing books and DVDs, you might like to browse through the selection on the new UK Rivers Network store, brought to you in association with Amazon.co.uk.

Screenshot of explain that stuff web store

Organizations and groups you can join

The best place to start is the regularly updated ODP section Recreation: Outdoors: Fishing: Associations and Clubs, which currently lists 163 groups worldwide (though a bit of a mish-mash at the moment).

UK

International

Fishing controversies

Opponents of fishing

We like to include a balance of information on our website, so here are some links to pages and websites by people who find fishing objectionable, offensive, pointless, and cruel. We're not expressing a view here: you can read both sides and make up your own mind.

Commercial overfishing

Rivers and seas can be a sustainable resource—but in too many places they're not at the moment. According to the MSC: "52% of fish stocks are fully exploited, which means that they are being fished at their maximum biological capacity. 24% are over exploited, depleted or recovering from depletion. 21% are moderately exploited. Only 3% of the world's fish stocks are underexploited."

More lighthearted

Click here for more information

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