What is not all that clear is why fewer folks are turning to fishing for recreation. I suspect there are some social applications at work here involving parenting, or lack thereof, which I simply don't know anything at all about. It's a different world than it once was. There are so many forms of entertainment out there, some of it so exotic as to make a hook, line and bobber almost laughably out of it. Something must be done Rules may have something to do with it.
Recreational fishing becomes ever more regulated with each year.
Bag limits are being tightened. Minimum size limits are increasing. They are looking at slot sizes for walleyes on parts of the Wisconsin River. You get the idea. Although fishing licenses remain a reasonably good economic buy, the cost is not going down.