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ThrillFishing Toolbox Part 1: Getting Started

JuLY 2020

 

There is a huge pool of online resources for learning about fishing.   I use many of these resources direction and subscribe to the magazines and social content sites.  This 3-part article will highlight some of the various places to find solid information about fishing.

  • Magazines
  • TV Shows

    • There are TV shows that focus on topics such as saltwater fishing or Bass and Bass tournaments.   There is the World Fishing Network that has many different TV shows with a variety of topics. 

  • Web sites

    • Manufacturers and tackle providers all have web sites. Some local sites also have periodic fishing reports from anglers and captains in the area.  A few local sites include: 

    • On the Water

    • The Fisherman

    • RichZ Bass Blog

  • YouTube

    • YouTube can be a very useful site for information, but – many of the posts focus on specific products and the videos where the hosts catch large and many fish are often specific fish parks that are highly stocked with large fish for a fee.  Also, when the hosts discuss products, they can be biased and influenced by the manufacturer. 

  • Bait/tackle shops

    • The single best place for local timely information including tackle, bait, tactics, locations. It is good to develop a relationship with a single store to get the best information. Most state fisheries web sites have links to local tackle shops or you can use Google maps to do a local search.

  • Mobile Applications

    • As with the rest of the world, even fishing has gone Digital.  There are applications such as FishBrain and others which are social media sites with local content from contributors.

I have documented selected fishing related links that I find useful.  As mentioned above, there are many, many other sources.

In this document, I will present some of the Connecticut-specific sites and reference information and in the Information Toolkit articles 2 and Toolkit 3, will supply the broader information sources beyond CT.

I will look to update this list periodically.  Please let me know if you have other sites that I could add to this list for reference.

Connecticut Fisheries Division

The CT fisheries site has a wide variety of information about fishing across the state.  The state has really done an impressive job of collecting and presenting key information on programs, locations, species, and fishing education. 

They have also created a site for Fish and Wildlife Backgrounds for Zoom meetings to provide some fun for all of those working from home – https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Natural-Resources/CT-Fish-and-Wildlife-Zoom-Backgrounds

Main site

https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Fishing/CT-Fishing   

Youth Fishing Passport and Fishing Challenge

For young fisherman, the state of Connecticut, has created a youth fishing passport and a fishing challenge.  The passport is a symbolic fishing certificate for young anglers.  It is free and there are even sponsors that offer product and other discounts to passport holders. 

The fish challenge scorecard is like the Fish Bucket list that ThrillFishing created but with a broader scope of species listed.  Kids can also send pictures of their catch to the DEEP for a chance to win prizes.

https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/fishing/care/YFPScorecardpdf.pdf?la=en

Fishing Regulations and Location

https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/fishing/anglers_guide/2020-CT-Fishing-Guide.pdf?la=en

CT Aquatic Resources Education (CARES)

This a great resource booklet published by the state Fisheries Division for young and old anglers alike.   They really did a wonderful job on this document.  It covers gear, conservation, species, tactics, etc.  I have included the table of contents for your reference.

https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/fishing/care/CARE2015Workbookpdf.pdf?la=en

CT Bait and Tackle Shops

https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/fishing/general_information/tackleshopspdf.pdf?la=en

Connecticut Weekly Fishing Report

This is a great local resource that gives weekly updates (during the season) for both fresh and saltwater angling.   Unfortunately, due to the health constraints they have not been updating this report yet this year….

https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Fishing/Weekly-Report/Weekly-Fishing-Report

I hope you find this information useful.  Next week I will publish part 2 of the information sites for great fishing content.

I am certainly looking for feedback, suggestions and most definitely fish stories.  You can contact me by email – [email protected]

Tight lines,
Paul Goldstein