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Fishing in Stardew Valley starts the morning after you receive a letter from Willy inviting you to visit his shop on the beach. He gives you a Bamboo Pole for free, and from that point you can cast into any body of water on the map. What you catch depends on four things at once: the location, the season, the weather, and the time of day. Most fish are only available under a specific combination of those conditions, which is why the same spot can produce completely different results in spring rain versus a clear summer afternoon.

Getting Your First Rod and Casting

Willy's letter arrives within your first few days on the farm. Visit his shop on the beach south of town, and he hands over the Bamboo Pole. Equip it from your inventory toolbar, stand facing water, and hold the use button to charge a cast — the longer you hold, the farther the bobber lands. Release to cast.

A few practical notes:

• You need open water in front of you. You cannot cast onto land or into obstacles.
• If the bobber lands in a valid spot, a "HIT!" prompt appears when something bites. Press the use button again during that window to start the minigame.
• If you press too early or too late, the fish escapes and you lose the bait.

The Fishing Minigame

Once you hook a fish, a vertical bar appears with a green box you control and a fish icon that moves up and down. Your job is to keep the green box overlapping the fish icon. A progress bar on the right fills while you're overlapping and drains while you're not. Fill it completely to land the fish; let it empty and the fish gets away.

The fish's movement pattern is the main difficulty signal. Some fish sit still or drift slowly, while others dart up and down erratically. Higher-difficulty fish move faster and change direction more often, which is why the same minigame feels easy for a Carp and brutal for a Legendary fish.

Controls

• Hold the use button to raise the green box.
• Release to let it fall.
• Tap rather than hold for small adjustments when the fish is moving slowly.

What Determines Which Fish You Catch

Every fish has its own set of requirements. The wiki tracks these per fish, but the categories are consistent:

If a fish isn't biting, the most common reason is that one of these conditions is wrong — not that your technique is bad.

Bait, Tackle, and Skill

Your fishing skill levels up as you catch fish, and each level improves your odds. At level 3 you unlock the ability to craft Crab Pots, and at higher levels you gain access to better rods and recipes.

• Bait attaches to a rod and makes fish bite faster. It's consumed on each cast.
• Tackle attaches to rods that have a tackle slot and modifies the minigame — for example, making the green bar larger or slowing the fish.
• Better rods (Fiberglass and Iridium) add slots for bait and tackle and let you cast farther.

Bait and tackle are optional. You can catch fish with a bare Bamboo Pole, just more slowly and with fewer options.

Finding Specific Fish and Tracking Your Collection

The fastest way to check whether a fish is available right now is to look it up on the Stardew Valley Wiki, which lists each fish's season, location, time window, weather requirement, and difficulty. In-game, the Collections tab in your menu shows every fish you've caught and flags the ones you're still missing, so you can use it as a checklist.

A practical approach: pick a target fish, confirm its conditions on the wiki, then go to the right water at the right time with the right weather. If you're working toward the "Master Angler" achievement, the collection tab is the authoritative list of what's left.

A surf camp is a package that combines accommodation with daily surf instruction, while a surf school is usually just the lessons. If you want to learn to surf and have somewhere to stay sorted in one booking, a camp suits you. If you already have lodging or only want a few coached sessions, a school is the simpler and often cheaper route. The two overlap heavily — many operators, including OTRO MODO Surf Camp & Surf School on Fuerteventura, run both under one roof.

Surf camp vs surf school: the core difference

The practical takeaway: choose a camp when the trip is the learning experience, and a school when surfing is one activity inside a trip you've already planned.

What a typical surf camp day looks like

Schedules differ by operator and season, but a learn-to-surf camp generally follows this rhythm:

• Morning: breakfast, then a lesson or free surf while conditions are calmest
• Midday: lunch and rest during the strongest sun and wind
• Afternoon: a second session, video review, or free surf
• Evening: dinner, social time, early night before the next surf

Lessons usually run in blocks of a few hours and cover beach safety, paddling, popping up, and reading waves. Beginners spend most of the first sessions in whitewater near the shore; progression to unbroken waves depends on fitness, conditions, and how many days you surf.

What's usually included — and what isn't

Common inclusions at a surf camp:

• Accommodation (shared or private rooms)
• Daily surf lessons with an instructor
• Board and wetsuit rental for the duration
• Sometimes breakfast, dinner, airport transfers, or yoga

Common exclusions or add-ons:

• Flights and travel insurance
• Some meals
• Photos/video packages
• Transport to surf spots, depending on the camp

Because inclusions vary so much, compare camps on what's bundled rather than on headline price alone. A cheap camp that excludes gear rental and transfers can cost more overall than a fuller package.

Who each option suits

• Complete beginner: a camp, because daily repetition in the same group accelerates learning fast.
• Improver/intermediate: either works — look for a school or camp that groups by level rather than mixing everyone together.
• Travelling solo: camps double as a social base; you'll have built-in company.
• Short on time or already housed: a surf school lets you buy exactly the sessions you need.

Choosing a destination and camp: Fuerteventura as an example

Fuerteventura, in the Canary Islands, is a common learn-to-surf destination because it offers consistent waves and warm water across much of the year. When evaluating any camp — Fuerteventura or elsewhere — check:

1. Season and conditions: ask which months suit your level. Beginners want smaller, gentler waves; strong winter swells suit more experienced surfers.
2. Group sizes: smaller groups mean more individual feedback. Ask for the instructor-to-student ratio.
3. Level grouping: confirm the camp separates beginners from intermediates so you're not held back or pushed too far.
4. Location vs surf spots: a camp near the beach cuts travel time; a remote one may need daily transfers.
5. Instructor qualifications and safety: look for recognised surf-instructor certifications and clear safety briefings.
6. Reviews and real photos: recent guest reviews reveal actual group sizes, food quality, and whether the vibe matches the marketing.

OTRO MODO Surf Camp & Surf School operates on Fuerteventura and describes itself as running both surf camps and surf courses, associated with Billabong and Blue Tomato — useful as a concrete example of an operator that offers the camp-and-school combination in one place.

Common pitfalls to avoid

• Underestimating fitness: paddling is tiring. A week of two daily sessions is more physically demanding than most beginners expect.
• Ignoring group size: a "lesson" with 15 students and one instructor is very different from one with six.
• Booking the wrong season: the best waves for experts can be too much for a first-timer, and flat summer spells frustrate advanced surfers.
• Assuming everything's included: confirm gear, meals, and transfers in writing before you pay.
• Skipping travel insurance: surf injuries happen; check your policy covers watersports.

If you want a structured, social way to learn with lodging handled, book a surf camp. If you only need coaching and already have a base, a surf school is the leaner choice. Either way, match the destination's season and the camp's group sizes to your level before committing.