Please name the fish that can be caught with a bamboo pole

[Alice]

I know I can catch basic or common fish but I don't know the names of them. I am terrible at fishing, I need the absolutely easiest way to level possible. I am only fishing level 1 and I intend to use crab pots to level but I need to get to level 3 to be able to use them.

[Snowy Sprout]

Fish in the Mountain Lake. It has very easy fish, and they include Carp that sometimes don't move at all. Also includes Largemouth Bass, which isn't very hard to catch but is worth plenty of money.

[Buffmania]

If you cast so your bobber lands near the shoreline, you'll hook easier fish and more trash. You still get experience for catching trash and the joja colas can help offset the stamina you've spent on fishing.

[Alice]

Those are both good ideas, thank you.

[Mod_Abuse_victim#488]

if all you want to do is get to lvl3 to do crab pots just go buy a training rod for 25 gold and fish whatever. It'll give you a fishing bar as if you were level 5.

[Ophelia]

You can fish in the pond on your farm and catch trash too for some easy fishing exp, it's all trash and no fish.

I really disliked the fishing game for the looongest time so I know you can also get some crab pots from one of the community center fishing bundles without actually fishing. Just need forage from the beach & a crab can be found by killing rock crabs in the mines.

Ironically, once your fishing skill gets higher and you get access to the better rods/baits/tackles/buffs, the actual fishing isn't so bad! I went from struggling to catch even 1 in 4 fish, to actually catching all the legendaries on my most recent farm. It's sooooo much better with the levels and buffs!

[Alice]

Tried fishing at the mountain lake using your advice to keep close to shore and I caught more fish than I have the entire years I've been playing, not counting crab pots with other characters. Not sure if I like the training rod or the bamboo. I have both.

[Nakos]

I personally find the training rod easier to use for the first several levels of Fishing skill.

Yeah, you'll only get basic versions of the various fish, but ... that's easier to store with a starting inventory anyway.

Stick a chest down next to the spot(s) you like to fish at. Just be sure to check the wiki to be sure Villagers don't walk on the spot in question (I guess as of 1.6 they don't destroy them anymore, but they do still push things out of their way, so ... probably still best to pick a spot they don't walk).

[AudePlays]

The Mountain Lake is where I'd fish, I think you'll only be able to catch Chub, Carp, and Bullhead while you're up there. If you want to just Trash Fish with a Training Rod and you've reached level 20 in the mines, I'd fish there because it's impossible to catch anything but trash with a Training Rod. It won't be fast, but there's no Fishing Game when you're pulling in trash or algae.

If you have some extra coin, stone, seaweed, and algae, you could also build a Fishing Pond on your farm and gain experience with that. You can build one at Robin's and throw in either one of the fish you caught or one of the Beach Forage (or a Crab you got from a Cave Crab drop) and use that for some passive experience. The Ponds will give you experience when you either answer a Quest for an item or you collect from it (mostly Roe but some fish give items when they're near max or at max fullness.) You can sell Roe after you collect it or put it in the Preserve Jar and it'll make Aged Roe which makes more than unprocessed Roe.

Once you have Level 2 unlocked in fishing you'll get Bait, and if you're going the Community Center Route, you can get three Crab Pots from the Crab Pot Bundle in the Fish Tank. Four Beach forage and one Crab from a Cave Crab will complete it (but you can also buy Crab Pot fish from the Travelling Cart--I've seen snails, lobsters, crayfish and others. Just hhve to check on Friday and Sunday and hope something popped up. Put the Crab Pots on your farm in a piece of water by your most visited field or animal area and keep bait in a chest nearby and you'll have a small farm chore and won't have to remember where in the valley you left the dang things and have to make a long purposeful trip to empty and rebait it.