started fishing in my teens, plenty of fresh water that we could reach with our bikes

never had any interest in the sea tbh

95% of my time fishing has been for pike, with lures, from the shore (see AVI lol)

you never rake in numbers that way but this means the reward is even bigger when you catch one

and we target big ones anyway, not really numbers

another big target fish where I live is carp, I never got the appeal though, too much gear needed and you need to spend days at the same spot

but even in fresh water you can catch numbers and variety if you fish with a float and some maggots/worms/corn/bread lol

What part of the country are you in, OP? That will determine what's viable as far as fresh vs salt and game fish species because they do travel and will never be at the same body of water all year long especially anadromous ones.

I started out in my teens beating the bank but now mainly fish off kayaks and boats -- prefer kayak for ease of transportation and can launch off any shoreline designated public use. Salt vs fresh, for me, totally depends on season. For example, here in California Jan-March I mainly stay inland and fish rivers and lakes for trout, kokanee, sturgeon and stripers. April and beyond I focus on ocean fishing because salmon, halibut, rockfish seasons open. Summertime is also when squid, white seabass and tuna gets going too. I can make it to the coast or the sierras in under 2 hours so I do both salt and fresh. Don't overlook freshwater fishing because it does provide for some awesome tasting table fare.

Anyhow, for just starting out I'd say find a 7ft medium rated rod with a 2500 or 3000 sized reel. As long as you lightly rinse it afterwards that setup is the perfect starter set and can do rivers, lakes and ocean.

Not down here, the canals and lakes are way to dirty.