Fishing Quotes: 150 Fish-tastic Sayings

You might be someone who goes fishing every chance you get or are just heading out for your first cast. Either way, this list of the best fishing quotes will inspire your next fishing adventure. So whether you are looking for inspiration, a caption for your fishing post or just to bring back that feeling of fishing you will find the perfect quote here.

Our Favorite Fishing Quotes

1. “Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after.” – Henry David Thoreau

2. “Sharing the fun of fishing turns strangers into friends in a few hours.” – Eugenie Clark

3. “Somebody just back of you while you are fishing is as bad as someone looking over your shoulder while you write a letter to your girl.” – Ernest Hemingway

4. “One thing becomes clearer as one gets older and one’s fishing experience increases, and that is the paramount importance of one’s fishing companions.” – John Ashley Cooper

5. “Scholars have long known that fishing eventually turns men into philosophers. Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to buy decent tackle on a philosopher’s salary.” – Patrick McManus

6. “If all politicians fished, instead of spoke publicly, we would be at peace with the world.” Will Rogers

7. “The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of something that is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope.” – John Bucha

8. “The act of fishing transports us to a special world and a state of mind where we are free.” – Fennel Hadson

9. “The angling fever is a very real disease and can only be cured by the application of cold water and fresh, untainted air.” – Theodore Gordon

10. “I do fish. I think there is a connection between thinking and fishing mostly because you spend a lot of time up to your waist in water without a whole lot to keep your mind busy.“ – Anthony Doerr

11. “Having a fishing rod in your hand is merely an excuse to explore out-of-sight depths and reveal mysteries that previously only existed in dreams.” – Fennel Hudson 

12. “Time is but the stream I go a-fishing in its thin current slides away, but eternity remains.” – Henry David Thoreau

13. “I fish to scratch the surface of those mysteries, for nearness to the beautiful, and to reassure myself the world remains.” – Carl Safina

14. “If fishing is interfering with your business, give up your business.” – Sparse Grey Hackle

15. “There’s a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot.” – Steven Wright

16. “The two best times to fish is when it’s raining and when it ain’t.” – Patrick F. McManus

17. “I fish better with a lit cigar; some people fish better with talent.” – Nick Lyons

18. “The best time to go fishing is when you can.” – Ed Zern

19. “The fish and I were both stunned and disbelieving to find ourselves connected by a line.” – William Humphrey

20. “The gods do not deduct from man’s allotted span the hours spent in fishing.” – Herbert Hoover

21. “If I fished only to capture fish, my fishing trips would have ended long ago.” – Zane Grey

22. “The fishing was good; it was the catching that was bad.” – A.K. Best

23. “I don’t exaggerate – I just remember big.” – Chi Chi Rodriguez

24. “Fishing, with me, has always been an excuse to drink in the daytime.” – Jimmy Cannon

25. “I only make movies to finance my fishing.” – Lee Marvin

26. “Fishing is a delusion entirely surrounded by liars in old clothes.” – Don Marquis

27. “Don’t tell fish stories where the people know you; but particularly, don’t tell them where they know the fish.” – Mark Twain

28. “Comedians get jokes offered to them, rock stars get women and underwear thrown on stage, and I get guys that want to take me fishing.“ – Les Claypool

29. “My biggest worry is that when I’m dead and gone, my wife will sell my fishing gear for what I said I paid for it.“ – Koos Brandt

30. “The solution to any problem -work, love, money, whatever -is to go fishing, and the worse the problem, the longer the trip should be.” – John Gierach

31. “Soon after I embraced the sport of angling I became convinced that I should never be able to enjoy it if “I had to rely on the cooperation of the fish.” – Sparse Grey Hackle.

32. “Fishing is boring, unless you catch an actual fish, and then it is disgusting.” – Dave Barry

33. “There he stands, draped in more equipment than a telephone lineman, trying to outwit an organism with a brain no bigger than a breadcrumb, and getting licked in the process.” – Paul O’Neil

34. “Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day.” – George Carlin

35. “Reading about baseball is a lot more interesting than reading about chess, but you have to wonder: Don’t any of these guys ever go fishing?” Dave Shiflett

36. “There he stands, draped in more equipment than a telephone lineman, trying to outwit an organism with a brain no bigger than a breadcrumb, and getting licked in the process.” – Paul O’Neil

37. “WORK, n. a dangerous disorder affecting high public functionaries who want to go fishing.” – Ambrose Bierce

38. “If I’m not going to catch anything, then I ‘d rather not catch anything on flies” – Bob Lawless

39. “Why does a salmon rise? Why does a small boy cross the street just to kick a tin can?” – Lee Wulff

40. “Fishing is much more than fish. It is the great occasion when we may return to the fine simplicity of our forefathers.” – Herbert Hoover

41. “It has always been my private conviction that any man who pits his intelligence against a fish and loses has it coming.” – John Steinbeck

42. “Fishing is a discipline in the equality of men – for all men are equal before fish.”

43. “In every species of fish I’ve angled for, it is the ones that have got away that thrill me the most, the ones that keep fresh in my memory. So I say it is good to lose fish. If we didn’t, much of the thrill of angling would be gone.” Ray Bergman

44. “Catching fish is low on my agenda when I go fishing. I’m much more interested in savoring the day and exploring the wildlife of the river.“ – Fennel Hudson

45. “By the time I had turned thirty, I’d realized two important things. One, I had to fish. Two, I had to work for a living.” – Mallory Burton

46. “I only hope the fish will take half as much trouble for me as I’ve taken for them” – Rudyard Kipling

47. “Do not tell fish stories where the people know you. Particularly, don’t tell them where they know the fish.” – Mark Twain

48. “The fish is not so much your quarry as your partner.” – Arnold Gingrich

49. “I like to fish. Fishing is always a way of relaxing.” – Tom Felton

50. “It is to be observed that ‘angling’ is the name given to fishing by people who can’t fish” – Stephen Leacock

51. “Give a man a fish, and you’ll feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he’ll buy a funny hat. Talk to a hungry man about fish, and you’re a consultant.” – Scott Adams

52. “So long, and thanks for all the fish.” – Douglas Adams

53. “Give a man a fish, and he has food for a day; teach him how to fish, and you can get rid of him for the entire weekend.” – Zenna Schaffer

54. “It’s okay to have fish because they don’t have feelings.” – Kurt Cobain

55. “When you fish for love, bait with your heart, not your brain.” – Mark Twain

56. “Good friends are like fish. You need to have patience to catch a good one.” – Achirman Roy

57. “Fishing is much more than fish. It is the great occasion when we may return to the fine simplicity of our forefathers.” – Herbert Hoover

58. “Be patient and calm, for no one can catch fish in anger.” –  Herbert Hoover

59. “Fishing is a discipline in the equality of men- for all men are equal before fish.” – Herbert Hoover

60. “Do not tell fish stories where the people know you, but particularly, don’t tell them where they know the fish.” – Mark Twain

If you like these, you might also want to check out our other lists of Short Camping Quotes, Camping Quotes, Funny Fishing Quotes, Fishing Captions and Short Fishing Quotes.

Fishing Sayings

61. My dad was a fisherman, but he quit because his net income wasn’t enough

62. Procrastifishing: the art of going fishing when you should be doing something else

63. I’d rather have a bad day fishing, than a good day at work

64. When nothing is going right, go fishing

65. Dear God, grant me the serenity to accept the size of the fish I catch, the courage not to lie about it, and the wisdom to know that none of my fishing buddies would believe me anyway. Amen

66. I’d rather fish

67. You can’t buy happiness, but you can go fishing, and that’s pretty much the same thing

68. Of course, I talk to myself when I’m fishing. Sometimes I need expert advice

69. A fisherman lives here with the catch of his life

70. If I’m not fishing, I’m thinking about it

71. Give a man a fish, you feed him for a day, teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime

72. There is no losing in fishing. You either catch or you learn. Either way, it’s better than work

73. Work is for people who can’t fish

74. The only thing I love more than fishing is being a Dad/Mom/Grandpa/Grandma

75. Happiness is a big fish, and a witness

76. I had to call in sick, my arm is in a cast

77. Sometimes, when the water is quiet, you can almost hear the fish laughing at you

78. A bad day of fishing is still better than a good day at the office!

79. A woman, who has never seen her husband fishing, doesn’t know what a patient man she married!

80. Some people will just never understand us, fishing isn’t just a pass time or a sport, it’s a way of life..

81. Give a man a fish; he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and you will find bait in the fridge

82. There are two types of fisherman – those who fish for sport and those who fish for fish.

83. Fishing is the sport of drowning worms.

84. Fishing is such great fun, I have often felt, that it really ought to be done in bed.

85. When in doubt, exaggerate

86. Fishing tournaments seem a little like playing tennis with living balls.

87. The awkward fisherman does nothing but disturb the water.

88. Fishing ruined my marriage. Thank God for fishing!

89. Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fish and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day.

90. Fishing is a reel tough job, but I’m willing to tackle it!

91. Old fishermen never die, they just smell that way.

92. Fishing will do a lot for a man but it won’t make him truthful.

93. Tight lines, warm breezes, good friends, plenty of bait it doesn’t get any better

94. Work is for people who don’t know how to fish!

95. Even a fish wouldn’t get into trouble if he kept his mouth shut

96. Nothing makes a fish bigger than almost being caught

97. “Most of the world is covered by water. A fisherman’s job is simple: Pick out the best parts.” – Charles Waterman

98. “Fly fishermen are born honest, but they get over it.” – Ed Zern

99. “The best fisherman I know try not to make the same mistakes over and over again; instead they strive to make new and interesting mistakes and to remember what they learned from them.” – John Gierach

100. “Most fishermen swiftly learn that it’s a pretty good rule never to show a favorite spot to any fisherman you wouldn’t trust with your wife.” – John Voelker

101. “Fisherman’s prayer: Lord, help me to catch fish so large, that even I, in the telling of it, never need to lie,”

102. “The fisherman knows that the sea is dangerous and the storm terrible, but they have never found these dangers sufficient reason for remaining ashore.” –Vincent Van Gogh

103. “The fisherman fishes as the urchin eats cream buns, from lust.” –T.H. White

104. “There will be days when the fishing is better than one’s most optimistic forecast, others when it is far worse. Either is a gain over just staying home.” – Roderick Haig Brown

105. “Be patient and calm – for no one can catch fish in anger.” – Herbert Hoover

106. “If, as I suspect, trout fishing is something of a disease, then it is also something of therapy in itself.” –Tom Sutcliffe

107. “Fishing provides that connection with the whole living world. It gives you the opportunity of being totally immersed, turning back into yourself in a good way. A form of meditation, some form of communion with levels of yourself that are deeper than the ordinary self.” – Ted Hughes

108. “Fly-fishing is a magic way to recapture the rapture of solitude without the pangs of loneliness.” – John D. Voelker

109. “There are always new places to go fishing. For any fisherman, there’s always a new place, always a new horizon.“ – Jack Nicklaus

110. “Having a fishing rod in your hand is merely an excuse to explore out-of-sight depths and reveal mysteries that previously only existed in dreams.“ – Fennel Hudson

111. “It is impossible to grow weary of a sport that is never the same on any two days of the year.” –  Theodore Gordon

112. “As no man is born an artist, so no man is born an angler.“ – Izaak Walton

113. “Fishing is not an escape from life, but often a deeper immersion into it.” Harry Middleton

114. “Fishing provides time to think, and reason not to. If you have the virtue of patience, an hour or two of casting alone is plenty of time to review all you’ve learned about the grand themes of life. It’s time enough to realize that every generalization stands opposed by a mosaic of exceptions, and that the biggest truths are few indeed.“ – Carl Safina

115. “I propose that it only matters that you attempt to catch a fish. Doing so brings you close to nature.“ -Fennel Hudson

116. “The great charm of fly-fishing is that we are always learning.” – Theodore Gordon

117. “In our family, there was no clear line between religion and fly fishing” – Norman in “A River Runs Through It”

118. “Fly-fishing is the most fun you can have standing up.” – Arnold Gingrich

119. “O, Sir, doubt not that angling is an art; is it not an art to deceive a trout with an artificial fly?” – Izaak Walton

120. “Fly fishing for trout is like raising children; you never know what’s going to happen next.” – Jimmy D. Moore

121. “Fly fishing may be considered the most beautiful of all rural sports.” – Frank Forester

122. “The man who coined the phrase ‘money can’t buy happiness,’ never bought himself a good fly rod.” – Reg Baird

123. “There is no greater fan of fly fishing than the worm.” – Patrick F. McManus

124. “If you’ve got short, stubby fingers and wear reading glasses, any relaxation you would normally derive from fly fishing is completely eliminated when you try to tie on a fly.” – Jack Ohman

125. “One great thing about fly fishing is that after a while nothing exists of the world but thoughts about fly fishing.” – Norman Maclean

126. “If fishing is a religion, fly fishing is the high church.” – Tom Brokaw

127. “Fly-fishing is solitary, contemplative, misanthropic, scientific in some hands, poetic in others, and laced with conflicting aesthetic considerations. It’s not even clear if catching fish is actually the point.” – John Gierach

128. “What a tourist terms a plague of insects, the fly fisher calls a great hatch.” – Patrick F. McManus

129. “The best days an angler spends upon his river – the river which is Heraclitus’ river, which is never the same as the angler is never the same, yet is the same always – are those he recollects in tranquillity, as wintry weather lashes the land without, and he, snug and warm, ties new patterns of dry-fly, and remembers the leaf-dapple upon clear water and the play of light and the eternal dance of ranunculus in the chalk-stream.“ – G.M.W. Wemyss

Fishing Quotes for Instagram

130. “Some go church and think about fishing; others go fishing and think about God.” – Tony Blake

131. “Fishing seems to be the favorite form of loafing.” – F. W. Howe

132. “Angling may be said to be so like the mathematics that it can never be fully learnt.” – Izaak Walton

133. “Everyone should believe in something; I believe I’ll go fishing.” – Henry David Thoreau

134. “Be patient and calm — for no one can catch fish in anger.” – Herbert Hoover

135. “A trout is a moment of beauty known only to those who seek it.” – Arnold Gringrich

136. “Angling is extremely time consuming. That’s sort of the whole point.” – Thomas McGuane

137. “The fishing was good; it was the catching that was bad.” – A. Best

138. “I go fishing not to find myself but to lose myself.” – Joseph Monniger

139. “Calling fishing a hobby is like calling brain surgery a job.” – Paul Schullery

140. “Creeps and idiots cannot conceal themselves for long on a fishing trip.” – John Gierach

141. “The best time to go fishing is when you can get away.” – Robert Traver

142. “Everyone should believe in something. I believe I’ll go fishing.” – Henry David Thoreau

143. “I don’t want to sit at the head table anymore. I want to go fishing.” – George Bush

144. “I have fished through fishless days that I remember happily without regret.” – Roderick Haig Brown

145. “Fishing is a discipline in the equality of men – for all men are equal before fish.” – Herbert Hoover

146. “I got 99 problems, and fishing solves all of ’em.” – Earl Dibbles Jr

147. “Fishing tournaments seem a little like playing tennis with living balls.” – Jim Harrison

148. “Calling fishing a hobby is like calling brain surgery a job.” – Paul Schullery

149. “I’ve gone fishing thousands of times in my life, and I have never once felt unlucky or poorly paid for those hours on the water.” – William G. Tapply

150. “I have laid aside business, and gone a’fishing.” – Izaak Walton

151. “To go fishing is one of the most pleasurable experiences I can imagine.“ – Fennel Hudson

152. “Gone fishing. Be back when its dark.”

153. “My golf game’s gone off so much that when I went fishing a couple of weeks ago my first cast missed the lake.” – Ben Crenshaw

154. “Gone fishing. Be back for deer season.”

155. “My mind has gone fishing. Ask questions tomorrow.”

156. “I love fishing. You put that line in the water and you don’t know what’s on the other end. Your imagination is under there.” – Robert Altman

157. “Probably fishing is my first passion.“ – Luke Bryan

158. “I fish because I love to, not because I regard fishing as so terribly important but because I suspect that so many of the other concerns of man are equally unimportant; and not nearly so much fun.”

159. “The solution to any problem — work, love, money, whatever is to go fishing, and the worse the problem, the longer the trip should be.” – John Gierach.

160. “I thoroughly enjoy getting away from the game and going out fishing because it’s so relaxing, so quiet, and peaceful. I mean, there’s no noise other than nature… and it’s so different from what I do in a tournament situation that it just eases my mind.“ – Tiger Woods

161. “The fishing is a great relief for me. When I’m out there’s no cell phone ringing. I’m out there fishing with bears. I’m in the middle of God’s country catching tons of fish. I just absolutely love it.” – Rich Barry

162. “I love talk and I love fishing. I’m having a ball.” – Martin Milner

163. “I love fishing and surfing, and I work out every day.” – Karl Urban

164. “Well, I love fishing. I wouldn’t kill a fly myself but I’ve no hesitation in killing a fish. A lot of men are like that. No bother. Out you come. Thump. And that’s not the only reason.” –  Norman MacCaig

165. “I love fishing, any kind of fishing.” – Brandi Carlile

166. “Anytime I can sneak in a moment to fish and ride horses, I’m a happy camper!“ – George Foreman

167. “I love fishing. It’s transcendental meditation with a punchline.” – Billy Connolly

168. “I love any discourse of rivers, and fish and fishing.” Izaak Walton

169. “I love fishing. You put that line in the water and you don’t know what’s on the other end. Your imagination is under there.” – Robert Altman

170. “I am firmly convinced that the ideal combination leading to a happy life is to have the time to both fish and read.” – Brian Murphy

171. “Thank you, dear God, for this good life and forgive us if we do not love it enough. Thank you for the rain. And for the chance to wake up in three hours and go fishing: I thank you for that now, because I won’t feel so thankful then.” – Garison Keillor

172. “If people concentrated on the really important things in life, there’d be a shortage of fishing poles.” – Doug Larson

173. “There are two things in life you should never be late for, Number one is Church and Number two is fishing.”

174. “I’ve gone fishing thousands of times in my life, and I have never once felt unlucky or poorly paid for those hours on the water.” – William Tapply

175. “Many of the most highly publicized events of my presidency are not nearly as memorable or significant in my life as fishing with my daddy.” Jimmy Carter

176. “No life is so happy and so pleasant as the life of the well-govern’d angler.” Izaak Walton

177. “I don’t go fishing to escape my life; I go fishing to live my life.”

178. “Fishing in a place, is a meditation on the rhythm of a tide, a season, an arc of a year, and the seasons of life.” – Carl Safina

179. “Fishing provides time to think and a reason not to. If you have the virtue of patience, an hour or two of casting alone is plenty of time to review all you’ve learned about the grand themes of life.” –  Carl Safina

180. “In this ever-changing world, there are few things that have remained constant for me. The chance of hooking a nice trout still excites and thrills me to this day… just as it did when I was a kid. I like that!“ – M.A. Bookout

181. “If your concentration is getting bad, take up bass fishing. It will really improve your ability to focus. If you aren’t ready when that fish hits, you can’t set the hook.“ – Lee Trevino

182. “Bass fishermen watch Monday night football, drink beer, drive pickup trucks and prefer noisy women with big breasts.  Trout fishermen watch MacNeil-Lehrer, drink white wine, drive foreign cars with passenger-side air bags and hardly think about women at all.  This last characteristic may have something to do with the fact that trout fishermen spend most of the time immersed up to the thighs in ice-cold water.”

183. “Gone fishing, bass you later.”

184. “There is certainly something in angling that tends to produce a serenity of the mind.” – Washington Irving

185. “The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope” – John Buchan

186. “Time is but the stream I go a-fishing in. I drink at it; but while I drink I see the sandy bottom and detect how shallow it is. Its thin current slides away, but eternity remains.” – Henry David Thoreau

187. “There are some fish that cannot be caught. It’s not that they are faster or stronger than other fish, they’re just touched by something extra.” – Edward Bloom in “Big Fish”

187. “Bragging may not bring happiness, but no man having caught a large fish goes home through an alley.” – Ann Landers

188. “There is only one reason in the world to go fishing: to enjoy yourself.” – Leigh Perkins

189. “You know when they have a fishing show on TV? They catch the fish and then let it go. They don’t want to eat the fish, they just want to make it late for something.” – Mitch Hedberg

190. “Just as in cooking there’s no such thing as a little garlic, in fishing there’s no such thing as a little drag.” – H.G. Tapply

191. “Which fish dresses the best? A: A swordfish because it always looks sharp!” – Johnny B. Laughing.

192. “Last year I went fishing with Salvador Dali. He was using a dotted line. He caught every other fish.” ― Steven Wright

193. “You [demagogues] are like the fishers for eels; in still waters they catch nothing, but if they thoroughly stir up the slime, their fishing is good; in the same way it’s only in troublous times that you line your pockets.” – Aristophanes

194. “Teach all men to fish, but first teach all men to be fair. Take less, give more. Give more of yourself, take less from the world. Nobody owes you anything, you owe the world everything.” ― Suzy Kassem

195. “The metronome of our music and poetry isn’t the ocean, it’s fish.” ― Bren Smith

196. “Anyone can be a fisherman in May.” ― Ernest Hemingway

197. “I fish because I love to . . . because I love the environs where trout are found . . . because I suspect that men are going along this way for the last time, and I for one don’t want to waste the trip . . . and, finally, not because I regard fishing as being so terribly important but because I suspect that so many of the other concerns of men are equally unimportant––and not nearly so much fun.” – John Voelker

198. “…as the old saying goes: if you teach a man to fish, he will feed himself for a lifetime. But if you just give him a fishing pole, he’ll have to teach himself.” ― Zechariah Barrett

199. “Then he felt the gentle touch on the line and he was happy.” ― Ernest Hemingway

200. “[A]ngling or float fishing I can only compare to a stick and a string, with a worm at one end and a fool at the other.” ― Samuel Johnson

201. “was glad to be off the hook, which had been the second time that week as she had recently broke an addiction from fishing on the nearby bay” ― J.S. Mason

202. “He liked fishing and seemed to take pride in being able to like such a stupid occupation.” – Leo Tolstoy

Hope you found the perfect fish saying you were looking for.

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