I was in your shoes not to long ago. Unfortunately then I didnt know about this site. I agree with Top Ramen. Start simple. No matter where you are in the country LM will eat trout imitations. I would start out with a Huddleston 68 Special and then one in an 8 inch ROF, get a river2sea s-waver 168 and then a wake bait. those 4 baits will put you right around 100$ and definitely get you started. you can check out tactical bassin on youtube. hes got some really informative videos imo. Hope this helps!