So far in life, I’ve been fortunate to fish a lot of different lakes and streams throughout Pennsylvania, New York and Ohio. My favorite way to fish is to troll crawler harnesses for walleyes, but so far this year I haven’t had the time to get my boat out. Even though my boat has yet to touch water this spring, my family and I have done a lot of shore fishing on the Allegheny Reservoir and other places.

When I was a kid, some of the best days of fishing I ever had was standing along the shorelines of the Allegheny Reservoir. This spring has brought back many memories to me and helped remind me just how much fun shoreline fishing is. When I started boat fishing in my late teens and early adulthood, it definitely led me to overlook the many benefits of fishing from the shoreline. What I enjoy the most about shore fishing is how simple it is. Most of the time all I bring is a couple dozen nightcrawlers and a few fishing poles. Many times in the past I wanted to go fishing in the evenings after work but didn’t always have time to go get fuel for the boat and drive to a place where I could launch it. Boat fishing requires a lot more preparation than bank fishing. I literally never even thought of just going shore fishing for a few hours.

When I’m fishing from the shore, I love to cast the lines into the water and leave the rods sitting on Y-sticks the entire time unless I get a bite. Sitting along the shore waiting for a fish to bite, being hands free is so relaxing.

I also find myself enjoying the scenery and wildlife much more when I’m shore fishing. When I’m boat fishing, I rarely take my eyes off of my fish finder. And when the fish aren’t biting, I’m constantly running and gunning up and down the lake looking for hungry schools of walleye.

This year I’ve realized there are so many more places to fish from the shorelines than there are from a boat. There are many lakes and ponds in our area that you can not get a boat into or you aren’t allowed to use them.

Since the beginning of trout season, my family and I have fished a lot of new bodies of water that I have always overlooked because I preferred boat fishing. For kids, one of the best places in the county for youth trout fishing is Jack’s Hatch Nursery Fishin’ and Kids Club pond in Hazel Hurst. This is a “kids only” fishing area. The pond is always heavily stocked with brown, rainbow, brook and palomino trout. The majority of the trout are relatively small but there’s also potential to catch monster trout. The two times I have taken my son there we have rarely gone five minutes without catching a fish.

I think sometimes we forget just how easy and fun it is to grab the fishing gear and head to a shoreline somewhere. There are so many places to shore fish in this part of Pennsylvania. The Allegheny Reservoir alone has nearly 100 miles of shoreline.

The best anglers I know are mainly all boat fishermen, but the truth is, you can catch all the same species of fish from the shoreline that you would in a boat. Nowadays, depending on the size, the average cost of a fishing boat is $20,000 to $70,000. That’s not counting all of the electronics and other add-ons. Secondly, the cost of fueling a boat engine each time can be very expensive. For under $100, you can buy everything you need for bank fishing.

All in all, I’m not degrading boat fishing or encouraging people to shy away from it. I still prefer to fish from a boat. However, I certainly forgot all of the fun and benefits you can have from shore fishing, until this spring. I may always prefer boat fishing, but I’m definitely going to spend more time along the shorelines in the years to come.