Fishing Guide: How to Catch All Fish in Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life
Fishing is one of the activities you can do in Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life, besides mining. The fish you catch can be sold, cooked, or given to the villagers who like it (e.g. Daryl, Galen, Griffin) to increase their friendships quickly. But before you start fishing, you must have a fishing rod first.
How to Get Fishing Rod in Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life
You can buy a Fishing rod at Van's Shop for 500 G. Van will come to Forget-Me-Not-Valley to open up shop near the Bar on the 3rd and 8th of every season. You can get a better Fishing rod from Galen. He will give you a Fishing rod if you become his friend.
How to Fish in Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life
Hold the fishing rod you have. Stand by the edge of the water, then press the A button to throw the bait. After that, you have to wait until the bait you throw is bitten by a fish.
This is indicated by the sound of bites and the camera moving up and down. After you hear the water splashing ("bloop" sound), press and hold the A Button to pull the hook. Be careful, do not pull it too early because it will make the fish escape.
Fishing Spots
There are 4 locations that can be used for fishing, Upstream, Downstream, Spring Pond, and Turtle Swamp. You can't fish in the ocean.
Upstream is a part of the river from the waterfall, vesta's farm, to the bridge. Downstream is a part of the river from the bridge to the ocean.
Spring Pond is located in the forest near the Sprite's house. There are also some lamps like trees that glow green at night. For the Swamp, located near the beach and Cody's house, there is a small pond for fishing.
Where is the Best Fishing Spot?
According to HarvestMoonParadise.com, there are a few different wild animals around the village that could be indicators that fishing is exceptionally good in one area.
If you found the Turtle near the swamp, it means good fishing in the swamp
If you found the Raccoon near Versta's Farm at the windmills, it means good fishing in the downstream area.
If you found an Owl atop the Sprite Tree, it means good fishing in the Spring Pond.
If you found a Lizard along the forest path to the right from the forest spring, it means good fishing for the Upstream area.
But from my experience, the best fishing spot of all the locations above is the very bottom river (first picture) because there you can get the Sharshark fish which is very expensive if sold. While the best season to fishing is in winter and the best time is at night on rainy days.
The List of All Fish in Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life
Here is the list of all fish, its location, and its price if sold to Van. The price could be increased for certain fish if you are smart enough to negotiate with Van.
| Fish | Location(s) | Selling Price |
|---|---|---|
| Tiny Arna | Swap | 300 G |
| Arna | Swap | 400 G |
| Big Arna | Swap | 800 G |
| Huge Arna | Swap | 1500 G |
| Tiny Colombo | Downstream | 10 G |
| Colombo | Downstream | 20 G |
| Big Colombo | Downstream | 40 G |
| Huge Colombo | Downstream | 100 G |
| Tiny Huchep | Upstream | 80 G |
| Huchep | Upstream | 90 G |
| Big Huchep | Upstream | 170 G |
| Huge Huchep | Upstream | 250 G |
| Tiny Nyamame | Upstream | 50 G |
| Nyamame | Upstream | 80 G |
| Big Nyamame | Spring, Upstream | 160 G |
| Huge Nyamame | Upstream | 200 G |
| Tiny Yamame | Upstream | 300 G |
| Yamame | Upstream | 500 G |
| Big Yamame | Upstream | 1000 G |
| Hug Yamame | Swamp, Upstream | 2000 G |
| Tiny Rainbob | Downstream | 70 G |
| Rainbob | Downstream | 80 G |
| Big Rainbob | Spring, Downstream | 160 G |
| Hug Rainbob | Downstream | 500 G |
| Tiny Snelt | Downstream | 20 G |
| Snelt | Downstream | 30 G |
| Big Snelt | Spring, Downstream | 60 G |
| Hug Snelt | Downstream | 100 G |
| Tiny Sharshark | Downstream | 600 G |
| Sharshark | Downstream | 600 G |
| Big Sharshark | Downstream | 1200 G |
| Huge Sharshark | Downstream | 600 G |
Note: In HM: AWL GameCube, there are only two types of fish, Normal and Big fish.
That's all you need to know about fishing in Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life. I hope this guide could be useful.
Also, read: How to Play and Win the Mini-Games in Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life