Recommended
Fishing sites worth reading
The official fishing sources we check ourselves, plus the independent sites we read. Kept short on purpose, and a person writes every entry.
Official sources
Agencies, regulators and the organizations that publish the rules and the data. We use these ourselves. None of them asked to be listed and none of them link back to us.
EPA Fish and Shellfish Advisories
epa.gov
Consumption advisories for waters where mercury or PCBs make a catch worth releasing rather than eating. Worth reading once for the waters you fish regularly, and again before you feed a catch to children.
National Fish Hatchery System
fws.gov
Which federal hatcheries raise which species, and where those fish are released. Useful for understanding why a river fishes the way it does, and many of the hatcheries are open to visitors with no appointment needed.
NOAA Fisheries
fisheries.noaa.gov
The agency that sets seasons, size limits and bag limits in federal waters, which begin where your state waters end. Rules change through the year, so it is worth reading alongside your state regulations before a coastal trip.
USGS National Water Dashboard
dashboard.waterdata.usgs.gov
Live streamflow, gauge height and water temperature from every USGS gauge in the country, on one map. This is the same data behind our river conditions, read straight from the source, and it is the first thing worth checking before you drive anywhere.
Independent sites
Written by people who do this rather than by an agency. We read every one before it goes on this page.
Worth reading anywhere
GB FlyCasters
gbflycasters.org
The fly fishing club of Granite Bay, California. Members teach Fly Fishing 101, rod and net building and casting, run monthly fishouts with loaner gear, and fund local conservation groups such as the Dry Creek Conservancy.
Tri-Valley Fly Fishers
tri-valleyflyfishers.org
A fly fishing club for the Livermore, Pleasanton and Dublin area of California. It runs fly tying, casting and entomology classes, Trout in the Classroom, the Living Arroyos conservation work, and club outings from the Lower Yuba to Pyramid Lake.
Cape Fear Flyfishers
capefearff.com
A Fly Fishers International chapter serving Southport and Wilmington, North Carolina, founded in 2006 for fly anglers of every skill level. Members fish salt and fresh water, meet monthly with speakers on topics from marine fisheries to steelhead, and keep a handy page of local tide, wind and weather links.
New Mexico Trout
newmexicotrout.org
A volunteer-run nonprofit working to protect and restore trout habitat across New Mexico. Members meet monthly with a guest speaker, run a fly-tying roundtable, work on conservation projects, and host an annual conclave each winter. The site also covers New Mexico streams, lakes and fly patterns.
Run a site we should know about?
We read everything that comes in. Independent sites about fishing only, and a person writes the description, so there is no need to send us one.
Add your siteWe link to these sites because we think they are useful. Some of them link back to us. None of them paid for a place here, and nobody can buy one. If a site stops being worth reading, it comes off this page.
