Where to go
Each guide covers the fish and their seasons, where to fish, charters and guides, where to stay, and what else there is to do.
Alaska
Plan a Kenai Peninsula fishing trip: the Kenai, Kasilof and Russian rivers, halibut out of Homer and Seward, salmon run timing by species, combat fishing, guided vs DIY, lodges and the drive from Anchorage.
Florida
The Florida Keys put flats, backcountry, reef and offshore fishing within a short run of each other. Tarpon and permit in spring and summer, sailfish in winter, mahi in summer, and snapper all year, with charters in every town from Key Largo to Key West.
Florida
Destin is a Gulf of Mexico fishing town on Florida's Panhandle, with a harbor full of charter and party boats, deep water a short run offshore, a calm bay behind the beaches, and a month-long fishing rodeo every October.
Louisiana
Louisiana's coast runs from Venice at the mouth of the Mississippi to Grand Isle, Lafitte and Cocodrie. Redfish and speckled trout fill the marsh most of the year, and offshore boats fish the rigs for yellowfin tuna, snapper and more.
Michigan
The northwest Lower Peninsula pairs Lake Michigan charter ports like Ludington, Manistee, Frankfort and Grand Traverse Bay with salmon and steelhead rivers, inland lakes for bass, walleye and pike, and trout streams such as the Au Sable.
Michigan
Houghton Lake, Michigan's largest inland lake at more than 20,000 acres, is a drive-in ice fishing base for walleye, pike and panfish, home of the January Tip-Up Town USA festival, and a summer lake for walleye, bass and bluegill with public launches and beaches.
Michigan
Lake Michigan's two northern bays around Escanaba, Gladstone, Rapid River and the Garden Peninsula in Michigan's Upper Peninsula: walleye and perch through the ice in winter, then open-water walleye, smallmouth bass, pike and summer salmon.
Michigan
Lake Huron's Saginaw Bay is Michigan's big walleye bay: jigging through the ice from about January, a spring river and nearshore bite, summer trolling across the bay, and yellow perch from Linwood and Bay City to Sebewaing and Caseville.
Minnesota
Central and northern Minnesota's lake country, from the Brainerd Lakes to Mille Lacs and Leech Lake, built on walleye, pike, muskie, bass and panfish, the mid-May opener, family resorts with boat packages, and winter fish-house villages.
Missouri
A 54,000-acre reservoir in central Missouri with more than 1,150 miles of shoreline, known for largemouth bass around docks and brush piles, crappie in the creek arms and catfish from spring through fall, plus a long list of family resorts and rentals.
Montana
Plan a southwest Montana trout trip: the Madison, Gallatin, Yellowstone, Missouri at Craig, Big Hole and Beaverhead, base towns from Bozeman to Dillon, seasons around runoff, float trips, and park permits.
North Carolina
North Carolina's Outer Banks pair Gulf Stream charters out of Oregon Inlet and Hatteras with surf fishing on national seashore beaches, piers and the big sounds behind the islands. Spring and fall suit most inshore fish; summer is the offshore season.
Ohio
Ohio's western Lake Erie, from Port Clinton and Marblehead to the Bass Islands, Kelleys Island and Sandusky: spring walleye on the reefs and the Maumee and Sandusky river runs, yellow perch, island smallmouth, a large charter fleet and ferry-hop family trips.
Belize
Plan a Belize flats fishing trip: bonefish, permit and tarpon at Turneffe Atoll, Ambergris Caye and Placencia, the Grand Slam, the lodge model, catch-and-release rules, marine reserves, seasons, hurricane timing and licences.
Costa Rica
Costa Rica's Pacific coast runs from Guanacaste through the Central Pacific marinas at Quepos and Los Sueños to Golfito in the south. Sailfish and marlin are the draw, with roosterfish, dorado, tuna and snapper closer in. December to April is the dry season.
Mexico
Cabo San Lucas sits at the tip of the Baja peninsula with the Pacific on one side and the Sea of Cortez on the other. Striped marlin peak in winter, blue and black marlin in summer and fall, and October brings the big billfish tournaments.
Ontario, Canada
Plan a fly-in or drive-to fishing trip in Northwestern Ontario's Sunset Country: lodges vs outposts, walleye, pike, muskie, lake trout and bass, floatplane weight limits, the border, licences and what drives the cost.
The Bahamas
Plan a Bahamas Out Islands fishing trip: bonefish, permit and tarpon on the flats of Andros, the Abacos, the Exumas and Long Island, the lodge model, DIY wading, seasons, hurricane timing and flats licences.
May we count your visit with Google Analytics? It shows us which guides are useful. Nothing is collected unless you choose Allow. Details
Your browser sends Global Privacy Control, so analytics stays off and we will not ask again.
