Holy Mackerel! Our 4 Biggest Fishing Challenges

For better or worse, I married someone who loves fishing.

I knew this fact long before we transitioned to living in an RV. Keith owned a fishing boat when I met him. He earned multiple degrees in fisheries biology. Nearly 50% of his possessions and clothing seemed to revolve around fish. So, he wasn’t exactly hiding this passion from anyone.

But, fishing from your standard sticks-and-bricks home is a heck of a lot different than taking this hobby on the road.

If you’re a fisherman (or living with one), here’s a few of the big challenges you can expect when you transition to a full-time nomadic lifestyle.

Challenge # 1 – Fishing Licenses

First, you need to adjust your expectations when it comes to fishing licenses.

When you live a more stationary life, you probably only buy one license each year. And you likely qualify for the in-state/resident fees.

Once you start traveling full-time, you need a fishing license for each new state before casting your first line there. Finding places to purchase a license isn’t too difficult. It’s the impact on your wallet that’s the real hardship.

Let’s take Maine as an easy example.

A resident fishing license in Maine costs $25 for the entire year. That’s not too bad, right?

Then you glimpse down at the price of a non-resident license for the season, and the cost jumps to $64! Ouch, what a difference.

Sure, there’s shorter-term licenses you can buy when you’re traveling. Many states offer licenses for a single day, a weekend, or longer. While this system makes it seem like states want to accommodate visiting fishermen, these short-term licenses aren’t all that cheap. A fishing license for a week in Maine still runs you $43.

Now, assume you’re living in an RV full-time and you plan to travel to 10 states over the next year. The cost of buying non-resident fishing licenses in each one will really start to add up!

So, if you’re an avid fisherman, it’s well worth your time to ask yourself the following questions before deciding which seasonal or short-term fishing licenses to invest in:

• How long do I intend to stay in this state?
• How many times do I realistically plan to fish while here?
• Do I want to fish on a few consecutive days or throughout a much longer period of time?
• Do I plan to return to this state later in the season?

A little pre-planning can result in major savings to your wallet. And that’s a good thing, because that means you still have something left in the budget to spend on bait.

Challenge # 2 – Storing all that fishing gear

The next major challenge to taking this hobby on the road is where to store all your gear.

When you live in a stationary home, you usually have unlimited space to dedicate to this hobby. You can store rods and nets in a variety of places. And there’s probably boxes upon boxes full of tackle and lures sitting somewhere. You may even have a boat or fishing kayak hiding in the garage.

Once you move into an RV though, you really need to prioritize which gear will make the cut. It all can’t come along for the ride. Fishing gear can be bulky, heavy, or just awkward to store in an RV.

I’d like to be able to say we just dedicated a single storage space our RV to Keith’s fishing gear. But… I’d be lying!

Sure, we might have started out that way. But a fisherman’s gear is a lot like gremlins. It multiplies down in those dark compartments when you’re not looking. Now I can’t open a single basement compartment in our RV without seeing a minnow trap or some other gadget that we picked up along the way.

Look, I know paring down accessories for any hobby is hard. Each item has a specific purpose or special memory attached to it.

But, the nomadic life requires you to adopt a more minimalist approach with all that fishing gear.

Otherwise, your RV will exceed it’s maximum weight allowance.

Challenge #3 – Beware of the “Big 3” stores

Every fisherman I know loves three particular stores:  Orvis, Bass Pro Shops, and Cabela’s. They can walk into these stores and hang out for hours at a time.

When you start traveling full-time, your fascination with these stores doesn’t diminish. If anything, it will likely increase. Every time you pass one on the highway, you’ll want to stop and take a peek at what’s new. You’ll wonder if the Bass Pro Shop in Concord, NC is as good as the Cabela’s in Owatonna, Minnesota.

Let me assure you right now, the inventory isn’t all that different from store to store. But, the temptation to walk into them and touch everything still exists for some reason. (I’m not judging here. I get the same exact feeling whenever I see an REI).

These outdoor stores know your fish fever runs deep. And they WANT you to come in. That’s why Cabela’s lets RVs dry camp overnight in their parking lots. Chances are, once you’re there, you’ll be itching to buy something new.

If that “something” you end up purchasing is a new fishing license, that’s great. But, if it’s yet another piece of gear, see the minimalism rule above… If one new item comes in, something old must go out.

Our sanity and the RV’s GVWR depend on it.

Challenge #4 – Cooking your Catch

There’s nothing better than eating really fresh fish, right? And once you’re living the nomadic life and catching lots of them, you’ll probably want to keep a few and cook them up.

A word of advice here: cook your fish outdoors, not in your RV.

I’m not trying to criticize anyone’s cooking skills with this suggestion. I’m just bringing home the realities of living in a small space.

If you cook your fish in the RV, that odor will linger. For a really, really long time. You can open the windows and turn on a fan. But the smell will still be there. You can spray air freshener to mask it. But then you’ll just have a ‘linen fresh’ fish odor in your RV.

So, do everyone a favor and cook your catch outdoors. The fish will still be delicious. You can still rock fish tacos or blackened catfish on a camp stove or grill. And then you can wake up in the morning to the smell of coffee, not fish.

Final thoughts

Although I’ve highlighted a few of the challenges to the nomadic life and fishing, the upsides are plentiful.

If you dream about fishing in a wide variety of lakes, rivers, and oceans – the RV life will definitely help you satisfy that longing. After just a few weeks, your fishing log will be bursting with the number of fish and new species you’ve caught. Heck, you may even get the chance to teach your son how to hook his first large mouth bass.

And really, when it comes down to it – isn’t the worst day of fishing still 100% better than your best day in some office?