Stardew Valley has three primary skills that you can level up during your time playing one of the most calming games around. Those skills are farming, mining, and the skill we’ll be talking about here, fishing.

Unlike farming, however, players aren’t able to fish from the get-go, and because of this many people end up starting the game confused and looking for a way to catch some fish. Well, you don’t have to worry about that anymore.

We’re here to go through everything you need to know about fishing, including how to unlock it and efficiently fish in Stardew Valley.

Stardew Valley – How to Fish

Fishing in Stardew Valley is rather straightforward. After all, the game’s meant to be a calming experience, and using this skill is no exception. To fish in Stardew Valley, you have to:

1. After getting a rod, equip it from your inventory, and head to the nearest body of water you can find.
2. When facing the water, use the tool button to cast the line into the water.
3. You’ll see a meter appear, which will determine how far you throw the fishing line depending on how long you hold the tool button.
4. When it’s at a satisfactory level release the button to cast the line.
5. Wait for a while until an exclamation mark appears over your character’s head, at which point you have to quickly press the tool button once more.
6. Pressing the button will initiate the fishing minigame, which consists of a movable green rectangle that you control by repeatedly pressing the tool button. To catch the fish attached to your fishing line, you have to keep the small fish icon inside the green rectangle until the bar is filled.

When the bar gets filled completely, you’ll successfully obtain the fish! 

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There are certain factors that can make catching a fish easier as well, such as the bait you use, which rod you’re using, what your fishing skill is, and whether or not you decide to use a tackle.

Additionally, different types of fish might appear depending on which body of water you decide to fish near. Because of this, it’s recommended to experiment a little with all sorts of different locations.

How to Unlock Fishing in Stardew Valley

As mentioned above, unlike farming, fishing is a skill that doesn’t unlock at the very start of the game. The primary reason for this is that while you start the game with farming tools, those being the hoe and watering can, you don’t have a fishing rod at the start.

Instead, on the second day of spring, you receive a letter from Willey asking you to see him on the beach. When you get there, a small animation plays out, after which you get the bamboo pole added to your inventory.

With the bamboo pole in your inventory, you get the ability to fish by simply heading to the nearest body of water.