Times have changed and smartphones, especially waterproof ones go everywhere with us now. In fact, I’d argue that phones are now more instant information tools than things we talk on. These 7 free fishing apps for saltwater and freshwater have been great to have with me. Since they’re free, you should check them out as well. Free to download and if you don’t like them, free to delete.
Windfinder
You need to know if you’re going to go. Which direction the wind is blowing from, how hard, and what changes are coming over the day and week make this app pretty valuable. There is a free version but if you need more stuff, you can upgrade to pro. I never had the need to.
From Windfinder: Wind, waves and weather for more than 40000 locations worldwide. Any time, any where! For kitesurfers, windsurfers, surfers, sailors, and paragliders: The real time observations, so you know what’s going on! And accurate forecasts, so you can always find the best conditions for your sport!
Fishbrain
The Fishbrain app is a way to track and pinpoint your catches, share info with other anglers, see where they are catching fish, and even have discussions about what is working and not working. This app is a great help if you are traveling to a new place you’ve never fished but want to find a hotspot.
From Fishbrain: Fishbrain is the world’s largest community-based fishing app. Join other anglers in your area and contribute to the worlds smartest local fishing forecasts. Millions of anglers use Fishbrain to log their fishing activity and connect with like-minded anglers. Fishbrain has over three million users and two million catches logged, which makes Fishbrain the largest social network and utility app for anglers.
Fish Rules
Fish Rules is an app that makes the fishing regulations much simpler and on your smart phone. No more need for manuals or a dictionary to determine what the law says. Fish Rules gives it to you in plain language. Not sure what you caught? It also has fish ID in the app!
From Fish Rules: Fish Rules App simplifies saltwater, fishing regulations into an easy to understand format. With a glance, know if a fish is in season, how many you can keep, how big they have to be, and more. Fish Rules App includes saltwater fishing regulations for Federal and State waters from Maine to Texas, including:Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North / South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Louisianna, Mississippi, Alabama, Texas, and The Bahamas.
ANGLR
The ANGLR app is a replacement for logbooks. Track detail to the finest detail and use GPS to drop your locations when you catch fish. It records time, date, and more. You can add the ANGLR Tracker to your fishing pole and it will automatically track all that data and more. That part’s not free so I won’t go on.
From ANGLR: ANGLR has taken a 1000 year old process of keeping a fishing logbook and applied technology to make the process automated. Now fishermen can effortlessly capture their fishing events and apply the successful patterns to catch more fish the next time out.
ScoutLook Fishing
Finally, people who hunt and fish and are also weather experts made a usable weather app that can tell where I am at using GPS and show me the weather. No more vague 30% chance of rain today. It will tell me when it’s going to rain or at least the most probable time.
From ScoutLook Fishing: ScoutLook Fishing is a free map-based app that offers anglers pinpoint global weather forecasts and location management. Save unlimited fishing spots to your free account. Revisit your saved spots to plan future fishing trips and be in the right place at the right time!
Tides Near Me
My biggest pet peeve before smartphones was having to find a tide prediction chart in a bait shop and pray to Poseidon it would be right. Those days are gone. With thousands of monitoring stations, I can find out what the tides are doing today, tomorrow, and throughout the year. I plan my targeted locations and times to hit them based on this app. No more wasting time in dead water. There is a free version and an ad free paid version.
From Tides Near Me: Tides Near Me focuses on nearby tide stations and current tidal conditions. Quickly learn the time of the last and next tide and current, as well as when the sun and moon will rise or set. Fully automated tide tables, charts, and predictions.
There are no ongoing payments required for up-to-date tidal information on over 5,500 tidal stations in the US, UK (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland), Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and India. We keep everything updated for you!
Fishing Knots
I wasn’t a very good Boy Scout. Actually, I never made it past Cub Scouts. That being said, it goes without saying that knots are not my strong suit. I have a couple I memorized but different knots work better for different applications. Do you know the differences between a Bimini Twist and an Alberto? I don’t. But with this app I can tie either.
From Fishing Knots: Fishing Knots is a personal pocket helper tool, that explains how to bind the most important fishing knots. It helps you attaching your flies, hooks, swivels and other baits. No matter what kind of fishing you are doing, Fishing Knots contains tutorials of the most important knots.