Love fishing, slayin bass, rentin a crappy boat and drinkin zodes is an IDEAL time for me. One of the best parts is that you can catch 'real' fish and have a good time with crappy walmart rods. I think 50 bucks is probably enough to get you started. It aint for everyone though. my love of fishing started as a young buck exploring my neighborhood with other dudes, finding little ponds etc and trying to catch anything!