Great Retirement Places to Live if You Love Fishing

Anyone weighing great retirement places to live with rod and reel in mind has more options than the usual Florida beach town cliché. Nine communities across the country combine strong fishing, from tarpon flats to walleye lakes, with the practical stuff retirees care about: reasonable housing costs, favorable tax treatment, and easy access to the outdoors beyond the water.

Saltwater Towns Where the Season Never Really Ends

Homosassa Springs, Florida, sits about 75 miles north of Tampa on the state's Nature Coast, and its spring fed rivers feed directly into the Gulf of Mexico. Anglers there chase red drum, spotted seatrout, snook, tarpon, bull redfish, and cobia, often within sight of wild manatees that gather at Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park. The town has about 14,000 residents, a cost of living below the national average, and Florida charges no income tax on Social Security, pensions, or retirement account withdrawals.

Englewood, roughly 30 miles south of Sarasota, borders Lemon Bay, Charlotte Harbor, and the Gulf, and sits next to Boca Grande Pass, a stretch of water long nicknamed the Tarpon Fishing Capital of the World. Beyond tarpon, the mangroves and tidal creeks hold snook, redfish, seatrout, black drum, cobia, and sheepshead. About 21,000 people live in the unincorporated community, which was farmland, mostly lemon groves, until the late 1800s and still carries a slower, less developed feel than much of coastal Florida.

Cape Canaveral, on the Atlantic side of the state, gives anglers a choice of surf, pier, lagoon, or offshore reef fishing, with redfish, snook, tarpon, pompano, king mackerel, cobia, grouper, and snapper all possible depending on the time of year. The city of about 10,000 keeps a low key beach town atmosphere, sits near Kennedy Space Center, and benefits from the same no income tax policy that applies statewide.

Freshwater Options Built Around Lakes and Rivers

Paris, Tennessee, population around 10,000, sits within reach of more than a dozen lakes, including Kentucky Lake, Lake Barkley, and Paris Landing State Park. Bass, crappie, catfish, and bluegill are common catches, and the fishing comes paired with hiking, biking, golfing, and horseback riding. Tennessee doesn't tax 401(k), IRA, or Social Security income, which adds to the appeal for retirees on a fixed budget.

Pierre, South Dakota's capital, sits on the Missouri River between Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, and the surrounding waters hold walleye, salmon, yellow perch, northern pike, and smallmouth bass. Roughly 14,000 people live there, with additional fishing available at prairie lakes and the Fort Pierre National Grassland. South Dakota has no state income tax, and the area's cost of living runs below the national average.

Winter Haven, Florida, calls itself the Chain of Lakes City for good reason: some 50 lakes sit in or border the town limits. Largemouth bass, bluegill, panfish, and black crappie are the main draws, with Tenoroc Fish Management Area and Saddle Creek Park adding more options nearby. About 62,000 people live in Winter Haven, roughly an hour from both Tampa and Orlando, and the cost of living there also sits below the national average.

Places That Offer a Mix of Species and Water Types

Spokane, in eastern Washington near the Idaho line, has built a reputation around trout fly fishing, and Gonzaga men's basketball coach Mark Few is among the notable locals known to fish there. Lake Spokane, the Spokane River, and a web of other lakes and rivers hold bass, whitefish, kokanee, walleye, sturgeon, and steelhead. The city of roughly 230,000 has a walkable downtown with entertainment and arts venues, and Washington has no state income tax and doesn't apply its capital gains tax to retirement accounts.

La Crosse, Wisconsin, sits along the Upper Mississippi River and is considered one of the country's better spots for walleye, bass, northern pike, and panfish. The river widens into Lake Onalaska nearby, and Lake Neshonoc adds further variety. About 51,000 people call La Crosse home, a few hours from both Minneapolis and Madison, and Grandad Bluff offers a lookout point over three states and the Mississippi River Valley.

Lewes, Delaware, pronounced