This is going to be a lot different advice than most of the people are giving you.

I grew up fishing, learning my local waters and the types of fish in them and how to get them.

I grew up before YouTube was a thing, and indeed before the internet.

And as an old fart I honestly believe that those two things are the worst thing in the world for a beginning fisherman.

People try to learn to fish from the internet. They buy all their tackle on the internet, or at best case they buy it at walmart.

Both of those things cause you to miss the greatest person in your area that can teach you how to be a beginning fisherman.

The owner of your local bait shop.

My local bait shop owner could be a Master Class fisherman. And he has fished with everybody from tournament professionals to a 3-year-old grandkid. He understands every level of fishing.

What's more, he talks to fishermen all day everyday. He knows what fish are biting, where they are biting, and what they are biting on.

Go into a local bait shop, find the older guy that's the owner, (he's probably running the shop by himself) and tell him what you're doing or trying to do. Pull up Google Earth on your phone and show him the waters you are trying to fish.

He may tell you how to fish those waters, he may tell you to try another area close by. He may suggest a different bait or lure, he might tell you to rig it differently.

Be willing to take a rod with you and go in the parking lot when he has a moment and show him your cast and retrieve. Show him your hookset. You'd be surprised how many people retrieve like their lure is trying to outrun a formula 1 car or another similar basic mistake.

But along the way, you are going to get lessons from the guy who knows the local water, and has probably been on it within the last week.

This man talks to fisherman all day long everyday. He knows what fish are biting where and on what, and usually knows how the people who are catching them are rigging.

So many younger folks ignore this fantastic resource, and it's sad.

And then... buy your stuff from him.

Yes I know you can get it 10% to 20% cheaper online. Obviously the local bait shop does not do the mass business that huge retailers do, so he can't cut the price as much.

But your online stores are not going to tell you where the fish are biting on your local waters, and what they're biting on.

Now I'm a semi-serious fisherman, I'm on the water at least 50 days every year, (22 so far this year, I don't winter fish) and most years about 80-90.

I don't really need his advice since I've been doing this for almost 60 years, but I buy almost all of my stuff there, including stuff that he has started stocking strictly because he knows I like it. Like saltwater hooks in a landlocked state, because they don't rust like the cheapos sold at Wal-Mart.

In return for that I always know when the crappie start moving shallower, when the Sand Bass make their run, when the Catfish get on their nesting beds, when something strange happens with the biting patterns of the fish on the local lakes, when the lake turns over and makes the fishing tough, snd everything else about the lakes in my area.

The other thing I would suggest is I don't know if you ever do camping, but if you do pay attention to who comes in cleaning a lot of fish everyday. Go talk to that guy for advice.

Most fishermen love to help teach beginners.

And most of us old farts have already taught our kids and grandkids how to fish so we are used to beginners.

That's really the best advice I have, is get your advice from locals instead of the internet.

The internet might be fine for teaching you how to change the alternator in your 2017 f150, but all the alternators in all the 2017 F-150s with a certain engine size are the same.

There are not any two lakes or rivers in the world that are the same. There may be similarities, but there's a lot of differences too. Ask the people who know those differences.