Fishing
Overview
Fishing is the act of attracting and catching fish in water using tackle such as a fishing rod, fishing line, and hook. It began as one of humanity's oldest means of securing food for survival, but today it has expanded into leisure, sport, and further into tourism and industry as a representative outdoor activity. A distinguishing feature is that methods are extremely subdivided according to environment and target species—sea and freshwater, boat and rock, lure and live bait.
Main content
Definition and classification
Fishing is broadly divided into freshwater fishing and seawater (sea) fishing. Freshwater fishing targets crucian carp, carp, bass, trout, etc. in reservoirs, rivers, dams, and pay fishing ponds, while sea fishing targets black sea bream, sea bass, rockfish, red sea bream, yellowtail, etc. from breakwaters, rocks, boats, and coastal areas. In terms of methods, there are float fishing (대낚시/찌낚시) using a float, lure fishing in which an artificial bait is cast and reeled in, fly fishing using artificial flies made of feathers and fur, surf casting (원투낚시) in which a heavy sinker is cast far, boat fishing enjoyed from a boat, and handline fishing in which the line is handled by hand. To distinguish it from commercial fishing, fishing for sport and leisure is sometimes called angling.
Equipment and tackle
Core equipment consists of fishing rod, reel, fishing line, hook, float, sinker, lure, and bait. The length and stiffness (backbone power) of the fishing rod vary according to target species and fishing method, and reels are divided into spinning reels, baitcasting reels, and electric reels. Fishing lines mainly use nylon, fluorocarbon, and PE line, and hooks are subdivided by species, such as black sea bream hooks, iseama hooks, and chinu hooks. Tackle (채비) refers to a set of these elements combined for a purpose, and it is often said that the ability to configure tackle determines the catch. Bait is divided into live bait such as earthworms, lugworms, shrimp, and krill, and artificial bait such as soft lures, metal jigs, and egi.
Representative fishing techniques
Float fishing is a traditional method of reading bites through the movement of a float, and is the basis of freshwater crucian carp fishing and black sea bream and largescale blackfish fishing. Lure fishing is a method of giving life to a lure by casting and then reeling in, and expands into bass fishing, Shimano-series sea bass (seabass) fishing, squid eging, and jigging using metal jigs. Fly fishing is a high-difficulty technique of casting nearly weightless artificial bait using the weight of a special line; surf casting casts tackle long distances from the beach to target flounder and olive flounder, etc. In recent years, Japanese-origin techniques such as tenkara, egi, and tairaba have settled in Korea and formed genre-specific communities.
Resource management and environmental ethics
As the fishing population grows, norms for protecting fishery resources have become important. Compliance with closed seasons by species and prohibited catch lengths (minimum catch size), catch limits, and a release culture are emphasized, and catch-and-release—releasing caught fish alive—has become a core ethic of sport fishing. The spread of ecosystem-disrupting species such as bass and bluegill, pollution from discarded fishing gear, fishing line, and lead sinkers, and damage to rocks and tidal flats are also major issues. Practices protecting juvenile individuals and spawning females, taking trash home, and using eco-friendly sinkers are recommended.
Industry and culture
The domestic fishing population is estimated at several million, and the tackle market covering rods, reels, lures, clothing, and electronic equipment, along with pay fishing ponds, boat fishing, and fishing experience programs, forms an industrial sector. Fishing content centered on YouTube and communities has greatly contributed to information sharing and lowering barriers to entry, and fishing camping (낚캠) culture combined with camping and car camping, as well as family-oriented experience fishing, have spread. In regions, fishing competitions and festivals are used as tourism resources.
Safety rules
For sea fishing, the basics are wearing a life jacket, being careful of slips and swells on rocks and tetrapods, withdrawing immediately when weather worsens, and having night lighting and not entering the water alone. When there is a lightning risk, standing fishing rods upright is strictly forbidden, and on breakwaters one must prepare for waves and overtopping. Freshwater fishing also requires caution regarding sudden depth changes, boat accidents, and dehydration and hypothermia from long hours outdoors.
Latest trends
The biggest changes in fishing in 2024–2025 are the digitalization of equipment and the dramatic improvement in access to information. Fish finders linked to smartphones, GPS-based catch record apps, electric reels and electronic brake systems, and remote casting using small drones have become widespread, allowing beginners to build skills quickly. At the same time, as water temperatures rise due to climate change, subtropical species appear more frequently in the East Sea and South Sea, and the nearshore fishing conditions for yellowtail and tuna species fluctuate, leading to ongoing analysis that the traditional fishing-condition map is changing. On the policy side, enforcement against illegal gear and prohibited catch length violations has been strengthened, discussion of introducing a fishing license system and fishing tax has been reignited, and campaigns to recover discarded lead sinkers and fishing gear, as well as the development of biodegradable tackle, have spread. Culturally, the MZ generation and female fishing population are growing rapidly, making lightweight and design-sensitive equipment notable, and short-form content, expedition fishing trips, and overseas fishing tours have established themselves as new consumption trends. In addition, the trend of institutionalizing self-regulation and release culture at the community level to protect fishery resources is clear.
Related topics
- [[Lure fishing]]
- [[Boat fishing]]
- [[Fisheries Resources Management Act]]
- [[Camping]]
- [[Fishing tackle industry]]