Why Fish
There are as many reasons to fish as there are fishermen. For some it's relaxing and a good way to sooth frayed nerves. For others it's an exciting, competitive sport that gets the adrenalin flowing. Some still fish for the food it puts on the table since fresh fish are by far the best. Parents taking kids fishing is a great way to develop a good relationship with them and keep kids out of trouble. You may fish for these reasons and may have other reasons of your own.
According to The American Sport Fishing Association:
There are an estimated fifty million recreational anglers in the United States.
Fishermen outnumber people who play tennis and golf combined.
California, Florida, and Texas are the states with the highest numbers of fishermen.
The economic impact of fish in the United States is over $100 billion.
Fishing is a very popular sport worldwide. Anyone can fish at any age, a factor that makes it a great pastime for anyone. Since so many people choose to fish there must be something to it. Maybe it is a sport for you to pursue.
Fishing for Food
Anyone who has eaten a shore lunch of fish caught, cleaned, and cooked all within the span of a few minutes raves about how great the fish taste. No store-bought fish can come close to being as good as ones so fresh. And you know where the fish came from and how they were handled.
Chemicals and other pollutants have contaminated fish from some waters. Check fishing regulations for warnings and advisories on eating fish from your area. You're often told not to eat fish from certain waters more than a set number of times per week or month. These limits are extremely conservative so you should be safe following them.
Fish you catch yourself can also be much cheaper than what you buy. There are methods of catching fish that don't require much money and produce a lot of good-tasting fish. Watch your spending on equipment and bait and you can be cost effective. Even better, consider the cost as part of your recreation budget and the fish as a free bonus.
Fishing for Sport
There's something magical about the pull of a fish at the end of your line. It's almost addictive, and once you feel it you want to experience it again and again. That's why people like to catch bigger and bigger fish — they fight harder than the smaller ones. The fight of the fish is also why sport fishermen tend to use the lightest equipment possible to accentuate the fight.
All fish can give you a good fight, from a little yellow perch on ultralight tackle to a big-game saltwater fish like marlin on the heaviest tackle around. Fish are available to almost everyone, so fishing is a sport most people can enjoy. For the young it's an almost instinctive urge to fish and enjoy the sport even at a very early age.
Many people are competitive and fishing can feed that spirit, too. Most folks like to fish with others and try to catch the most or the biggest fish. This is what led to tournament fishing with big money prizes. It's a challenge to try to outdo other fishermen near you. You get the same feeling as you do when the team you're on wins in any other sport.
Fishing for Relaxation
Watching a cork floating on the water, waiting for it to tremble and then disappear can be an exciting part of fishing, but nothing is more relaxing. When you're concentrating on that cork, watching it with eager anticipation, the worries of the world seem to go away. You're focused on one thing and nothing else will bother you during that time.
Build a fire, have a cooler of your favorite beverage and good snacks handy, and you can forget about the cares of the world. From sitting in the shade or basking in the sun to lying back under the stars, fishing is as peaceful as you want it to be.
If you have access to a boat you can sit or lie in it with some poles out and be gently rocked to sleep. And if someone accuses you of wasting time, just tell that person you're fishing. It's always a great excuse for doing nothing but enjoying life. You can do absolutely nothing and get away with it.
Teaching Children
There's an old saying “Give a man a fish, feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime.” This is true when taken literally but even more true when applied in a broader sense to children. Children who enjoy fishing are too busy to get into as much trouble as other kids. And they're learning a pastime that will last them a lifetime.
Fishing teaches young people patience, how to pay attention, and the rewards of doing something correctly. Kids take to fishing naturally, and kids and adults fishing together helps eliminate any generation gap. It can also help teach kids to save their money for a desired item like a new reel. Parents fishing with their children will be closer to them than those who don't take their children fishing.
Don't try to teach kids to be patient too fast. When you take kids fishing, especially young children, let them play. Don't get too serious. When they tire of fishing let them throw rocks, look for bugs, dig in the dirt, or anything else that will be fun for them.
Although some kids may get into trouble slipping into places to fish that are off limits to them, they're less likely to get into other kinds of trouble. Kids who fish seem to be less likely to experiment with drugs, join gangs, or commit crimes. Fishing just seems to help kids grow up right.
