Lyme Bay, Lyme Regis Harbour

The North or Canon Wall, Lyme Regis Harbour. Dorset.

Lyme Regis is a quaint town, very popular with tourists and can get very crowded. Parking near to fishing spots can be a problem in season, so travel light. The harbour outer wall is known as The Cobb and has been the setting for many film scenes, that main sea wall is not fished much and is best suited to the more experienced angler. From the end you will be casting over rough ground and tackle loss can be high, expect dogfish or huss with occasional bass plus the usual floatfishing targets in summer.
Most fishing is done from the North, or Canon, Wall, the small beach behind the buildings on the Cobb extension or from the end of the pier past the buildings. A child friendly fishing spot except for the lack of guard rails. The harbour walls are a very popular spot for crabbing. Shops, takeaway food and toilets are found at the side of the harbour. Several angling charter boats work from here.
Fishing from the Canon Wall is mainly onto clean ground, although there are patches of rough near to the rock groyne, some sizeable wrasse lurk in the rough and along the wall close in. Currents are minimal and light tackle can be used. A large number of species can be caught including and mackerel and gar by float fishing during the summer months. Flatfish are quite commonly caught, flounders and sole mainly, after dark expect dogfish and pouting and it is always worth putting a big bait, or a livebait, close in for a bass.
Access to the Canon Wall is via the beach and involves climbing up over some large stones or up a vertical wooden ladder; the storms of early 2014 have scoured sand away from the land end of the wall meaning that the wall becomes an island over the top of larger tides. If you understand graphs look at this tide chart, if the height is over about 3.7m then you will get wet feet or worse when you try to get off. This may change if the currents or the council restores the sand.

The Harbour mouth, at the end of The Cobb.

Fishing at the Harbour mouth is much the same as from The Canon Wall, take care when there is boat traffic, Looking back from here towards The Cobb there is a small beach that can be fished at times; do not fish here when there is a big sea and wind from the west; the sea crashes over the wall.... take care.

The small beach behind the buildings .

There is a tackle and bait shop nearby, just along the narrow street that leads back to the town off the roundabout by at the bottom of the hill. During the winter months you may have to visit the tackle shop in West Bay for bait, ragworm, sandeel and squid seem to work best.
Changes to parking charges in 2011 mean that there is free parking in The Cobb car park after 6pm, it used to be after 9pm when the 40p per night charge was effective; a saving of 3 hours charges + 40p. A rare case of charges coming down..

There is a webcam overlooking the North Wall

Tide Times for the next seven days for Lyme Regis

not from Canon Wall or beach, from Cobb inner wall and end only

updated 26.11.09