North Devon, Ilfracombe Harbour

The top deck of the pier, note the tall post on the left on the lower deck.

Ilfracombe is on the north Devon coast, when you arrive you will note that the locals are not fond of direction signs.... there are small brown signs for The Aquarium and Harbour but they are easily missed. There is a large car park adjacent to the harbour wall so you can fish near to your car. There is a cheaper car park back at the head of the harbour.
There are toilets at the entrance to the car park and a tackle shop nearby, back up the road you came in on, follow the road round to the left and the shop is a short distance down that road on the right, (Variety Sports, 23 Broad Street, Ilfracombe, Devon EX34 9EE). Note, Apr 2016, this shop looks as if it is closing down, for sale sign and irregular opening hours. There is another shop High Street Tackle, 153 High Street, Ilfracombe, Devon EX34 9EZ 
There are plenty of shops, cafés and pubs nearby for food and drink.

The lower deck at low tide.

The tides here are typical of the area, big. The water comes up a long way and can catch out the unwary..... the weed growing on the wooden posts on the lower level is a clue to what happens later in the tide. You can only fish the lower section for a couple of hours before and after low tide, less or not at all in rough weather.

This is a venue that can be fished with light or heavy tackle, big baits cast out towards Wales from the end of the lower level can catch you a conger, more likely to catch a dogfish, but conger are regularly caught here. Fishing light close in can result in many species that are attracted by the cover provided by the pier structure and submerged obstructions, it is snaggy however and you will lose some gear. Fish with hook lengths and lead links of lesser breaking strain than the mainline so that you can pull clear of the snags, fine wire hooks that bend such as the Mustad Nordic Bend are good in these situations. Size four are about right for general species hunting close in. Ragworm is the most used bait but fish baits will catch as well.
Fishing further out puts your bait out onto a generally sandy bottom with some weed clumps and other snags, there is not much tidal flow so grip leads are not necessary to hold bottom.
Float fishing near to the pier can be productive, when last there ( Mid October ), there were gar, sand smelt, coalfish and a mullet caught on fish strips fished at depths of up to twelve feet or so. Fishing out onto the sand gave small whiting, sole and a small conger eel

Tide flooding the lower level.

The pool that is enclosed by the pier can be fished; an angler fishing here had a silver eel later in the tide.

Note the post referred to in the first picture caption !

Fishing from the rocks is possible at low tide but be very aware of the advancing tide, the rocks in the picture above offer no refuge from a swell or a bigger tide.

Tide times for the next seven days for Ilfracombe

Easy wheelchair access and no distance casting needed makes this a good venue for a disabled angler

easy level access to railed promenade on top level sloping ramp to un-railed lower level.

Poole Harbour, Baiter.

Baiter, looking back towards the car park off Labrador Drive.

Baiter Park is an area of reclaimed land in Poole between the Quay and Poole Park. It was once the site of an isolation hospital* built on a spit of land surrounded by water or salt flats. The remaining portion of the building can be seen in the picture above. The park is alongside Labrador Drive and Catalina Drive and has a large car park off each road and a toilet block between them.
This is a noted spot for flounder fishing, the venue is fishable over high tide from the comfort of a paved path and benches. There is a long section of water that fishes much the same over a large part of that length.... this makes it a popular site for matches so you may find it busy. The hot spot is said to be the area where the culvert allows water flow into the pond within Poole Park.

Baiter, looking towards Poole Park.

The bottom here is silt and mud with some weed patches. Flounders, eels and small bass are the most likely catch so use ragworm baits on smallish hooks. Distance casting is not required, fish can be very close in. Boats fishing just offshore catch black bream in late summer, and smoothound are said to turn up on occasion.

There is a public slipway off the car park which is very popular with the jet-ski users who in turn are not very popular with anglers. There is a dedicated area for them to play in over the water but many prefer to show off around the launch area.

There are no cafés nearby, you will need to go back to the Quay area or rely on a snack van that appears on occasion in the car park.
There is good level wheelchair access but some assistance to get fish back over the rock fringe may be required.

The nearest tackle shops for bait are Sea Fishing Poole at the eastern end of The Quay, then the Poole Sea Angling Centre near Poole Quay or The Wessex Angling Centre on Wimborne Road.

* update 11 Sep .2012.... skulking around the internet, as you do, I came across this site which, although about windmills, gives the history of the area. As usual answers to one question lead to another question....the area that is now Poole Park boating lake was once called Hole's Bay...why is Hole's Bay now in another part of the harbour ?


OTHER LOCAL VENUES Holes Bay Evening Hill


Tide times for Baiter for the next 7 days.

with assistance

Pembrokeshire, Hobb's Point, Pembroke Dock.

Hobb's Point showing the pontoon in place.

Hobb's Point is signposted once you get to Pembroke Dock, look for the brown tourist information signs. It is at the end of Pier Road, don't expect to find a pier, it is the ramp that was used by the car ferry service across the River Cleddau before the bridge was built.
Winter fishing is done from the railed section at the top of the ramp, during the summer a pontoon is erected which prevents the landing of any fish caught. Cod and whiting are targeted by putting large baits out more than eighty yards or so to clear the horrendous snags which result from cars off the old ferry, supermarket trolleys, benches, litter bins, paving slabs and any other rubbish the locals can find to lob in there. If you are prepared to risk losing tackle and fish rotten bottom rigs then conger can be caught here in the rough, close in. Dogfish are likely to put in an appearance at some stage, in the rough or out on the clean ground.

Hobb's Point, the ramp.

Fishing close in is a technique to increase your 'species caught' list if you fish the sloping ramp section. There are snags, kelp and other weed but the bottom is teeming with fish species, four types of wrasse, umpteen of gobies, butterfish, sand smelt, pollack, tiny codling, eels, and others. Use a light rod and small hooks. I use size four fine wire hooks that will bend out of snags under pressure tied to hook lengths about half the breaking strain of the main line, using one ounce leads keeps the cost of lost tackle down. Small pieces of ragworm, stale or dead and dying works better than fresh... or small slivers of fishbait or sandeel will work as well. Fish within a yard or so from the wall ....... and do not be too surprised if in August or September you catch one of these...especially around low slack water.

Trigger fish caught in September, Hobb's Point

Float fishing can reduce tackle loss and can result in pollack or bass, with mackerel in season. The area off the end of the ramp where the water swirls as the tide moves is favourite.
If you bottom fish parallel to the ramp out from the end towards the boat moorings you will be onto generally clean ground with clumps of weed you will pick up bigger wrasse and school bass. Cast over into the shallows to the right and mullet are possible; you can watch the swirls they make in the water as the tide advances over the mud, I'm told they will take ragworm but I haven't the patience for mullet fishing....

This venue has the advantage of being fishable at any state of the tide although heavy grip leads will be needed to hold in the tide if casting out to the main channel.

Be very wary of the green slime on the ramp, it is very slippery when wet... and the ramp drops off suddenly it does not taper gently down to the sea bad.... it was made for a car ferry, not little dinghies.

the ramp, the green bits are slippery !

There is ample parking at this venue, you can park at the top or on the ramp itself. There are toilets at the top of the ramp, food and drink can be got at Lidl or Asda which you will have passed to get there, both are within walking distance. There are several cafés a little further on in the town.

Local tackle and bait shops are

Pembroke Angling Address 31 Meyrick Street, Pembroke Dock SA72 6AL 01646 622712.

Anglers Corner in Milford Haven

Unit 46, Honeyborough Business Park, Neyland SA73 1SE 01646 601300

OTHER LOCAL VENUES....... West Angle............ Brunel Quay
Tide times for Hobb's Point for the next 7 days

easy level access to railed promenade
and from the sloping ramp with a levelling device.

The Solent, Weston Shore.

Weston Shore, morning sunshine and a rising tide

Netley Abbey is fairly well signposted on brown signs from the M27 exit at Burseldon via the A3397;Travelling from Netley back towards Southampton you come onto Weston Parade, a road that runs alongside the shingle beach. There are free car parks and additional parking on the road. There are toilets at the far end where the road swings sharply inland. West of this bend is the area known as The Rolling Mills section, the mills are long gone, they used to roll brass for shell cases for WWI. The area is now a grassed public area leading around to Woolston.

About half tide, water has reached the shingle

This is a fairly shallow venue, there are extensive mudflats at low tide where worms can be dug. The venue becomes fishable when the water reaches the shingle at about half tide. Species caught here are flounder, eels and bass all of which are quite happy to hunt in shallow water. Fish can be caught very close to shore so it is worth a cast of a five or ten yards if you are not catching further out.
Light tackle such as a carp rod set-up will work well here as heavy weights are not required to hold in the tide. At my last visit two ounces was enough to hold.... and a fish came at five yards.
Best baits here are worms or shellfish such as slipper limpet, razorfish or mussel. larger flounder and school bass will readily take fish or squid bait.
There is a tackle shop in Bridge Road, Woolston and another, coincidentally, in Bridge Road, Burseldon on the A27. There are some shops in Netley. A fairly child friendly venue, there is a playground half way along the road where it is possible to fish and keep an eye on the kids.


OTHER LOCAL VENUES.... Netley.....Magazine Lane

Approximate Tide Times for the next seven days

A short distance across loose shingle to fish at high tide

updated 27 June 09 tide time link added
6th July note re. Rolling mills added

Pembrokeshire, Milford Haven.

The Mackerel Landing

Milford Haven is on the north bank of a large natural harbour that serves the oil and gas industry. It is reached by the A4076 from Haverfordwest if travelling south or over the Cleddau Toll Bridge on the A477 from Pembroke Dock if heading west. The Marina is well signposted, at the bottom of a steepish hill you will need to turn back sharp left and follow that road until the junction where a right turn will get you onto the road along the containing wall of the dock. There is plenty of free parking alongside between the road and the wall.The venue is good for disabled access and fishing can be done from the back of a car along the sea wall or from a wheelchair on the Mackerel Landing ( so called as it was built to service the Russian ships that once worked the area hoovering up the shoals of fish).
There are signs saying no unauthorised access affixed to the landing, I have yet to see anyone take any notice of them..

Fishing from here is over fairly clean ground although you will lose some tackle to snags stones and seaweed. The yellow post with a cross on top, in the above picture under the middle of the sailing ship,marks a large cube of concrete ( 8' cube maybe ?) that will snag tackle. Legering fish or worm baits will get pout, codling, dogfish, eels, whiting, bass, pollack , wrasse and flatfish. In summer float fishing for mackerel and gar is the most popular method.

The sea wall provides a handy rod rest; although if you do this be aware that a bass is quite able to flip your rod over the wall. Fish can be caught right up to the wall so distance casting is not required.

The Lock Pit.

If there is no boat traffic you can fish into the lock pit for mini-species or if you are optimistic a conger eel. Bait and tackle can be obtained from Anglers Corner which is on Pill Road, on your left and visible from the main road if coming in from Haverfordwest. ( opposite junction with Coombs Drive...... tel 01645 698899).
There are no facilities at this venue, there is a Tesco supermarket not far from where you turned off the road to skirt around the marina and some bars and cafés have appeared in the new buildings that have sprung up around the marina.
If you are prepared to put in the effort, soft or peeler crabs can be found on the beach to the left, seek them out among the weed covered rocks but put the stones back how you found them if you move them.

Tides Times for the next seven days

Poole Harbour, Holes Bay

Evening sun over Holes Bay

Holes Bay forms the inland extent of one of the arms of Poole Harbour; the venue is alongside the dual carriageway from the A35 into the town of Poole, the A350. The area is shown in detail here.zoom out and click on Bird's eye View. You can park on the grass verge at the side of the carriageway opposite the car dealership or the pub but there is some talk of police taking action against those who do, so perhaps it would be best to park in one of the side roads behind the car dealership or The Holes Bay pub. There are no facilities at Holes Bay apart from the pub or Macdonalds off Broadstone Way, a road leading from the roundabout between the venue and the A35.
There is access at various points to the footpath that skirts the bay so that the venue is suitable for wheelchair users if they are accompanied by someone able to cross the rock armour on the bank to retrieve rigs and/or fish. One huge drawback of this place is the constant traffic noise.

The rock armour and footpath.

Fishing is onto a muddy bottom and long casting is not required although a long cast will get you into deeper water of the channel where the boats are moored. The target species here is the flounder and some very big ones are caught each year. Bass are often caught but they are usually small and should be carefully unhooked and returned, eels are also caught. Best bait here is ragworm, lugworm or peeler crab. Crabs can be hyper-active here so reel in to check the bait at frequent intervals and if they are too much of a nuisance use a popped up bait, that is the addition of some floating beads threaded on the trace near the hook. The locals tend to use a two hook rig with short (30cm) hook lengths and with coloured beads in addition to the floating beads. The venue is fishable all through a small neap tide but the water shallows on a spring tide low., as a guide use easytide, if the height of water on the graph is above about 1.3 metres you should be fine.

looking back towards Poole.

The path is used by cyclists, look out for them (some don't bother with lights at night), keep the path clear and look behind when casting. Children are fairly safe here as long as they don't stray onto the road. The nearest tackle shop for bait is the Poole Sea Angling Centre near Poole Quay or The Wessex Angling Centre on Wimborne Road.

Tide Times for the next seven days

with assistance
Warning. The traffic lights at the Poole end of Holes Bay Road are equipped with speed cameras, they are not big and yellow, they pretend to be the type that catches people jumping the lights.... the limit has been reduced to 30 to make sure of revenue.... a while ago 50 was deemed to be safe.

Cornwall, Porthkerris.

Spinning for mackerel or pollack, Porthallow in the distance

Porthkerris is a disused quarry site on the Lizard between Porthoustock and Porthallow, take the B3083 from Helston past RNAS Culdrose then onto the B3293, past the dishes of Goonhilly Down and then onto the B3294 down into the village of St Keverne, turn sharp left after the red telephone box, and head for Porthallow... look out for a sign for Porthkerris, it has a picture of a shark and a big black arrow on it. From here the road narrows, yes narrows even more!, proceed with extreme caution, there are few passing places and driving off the road is not an option. You have to pay to park and to fish here, currently £2 parking and £1 per person fishing.

Rock ledges, Porthkerris.

At the bottom of the hill there are toilets and, in season, a snack bar. You will need to pay here, or if you are an early riser, someone will find you as you fish and collect payment from you. There is a small beach here which is used for other pursuits such as diving and swimming, fishing is done from the rock ledges which are reached by driving out to the left. Fish from any of the accessible ledges but take care when the rocks are wet. this is not a venue for small children but should be suitable for sensible older children. The rocks give access to deep water close in. Mackerel are the main sport here, and the litter left by those 'anglers', whose experience is limited to the slaughter of these fish, spoils a picturesque spot.

The 'disabled' spot.

At the far end of the car park there is a disabled wheelchair sign painted onto a block. Disabled wheelchair users will however be disappointed, access down the slope and across the rocks to a small rough concrete flat area (located behind the concrete pump house*) is not suitable for even a rough terrain chair. It is possible for persons walking with the aid of sticks and or crutches to negotiate the distance by care and patience. This spot is about the only flat spot to stand on, most of the rocks are sloping giving rise to sore ankles by the end of the day. If you are on this spot and able-bodied please give it up to someone who needs it.
Float fished fish strip or sandeel will catch mackerel, gar, pollack, wrasse and maybe a bass; bottom fishing over the rough will get thousands of wrasse, blennies and other small species with a chance of dogfish or gurnard. Congers are sometimes caught on big fish baits at night.

*The pump house supplies sea water to the new building within the car park area which processes the water to get sea-salt for the food-faddist; all salt comes from the sea, the supposed inferior salt from Cheshire mines being from the sea millions of years before man polluted it.
For your bait, the nearest place is a large angling shop in Helston, Atlantic Fishing Tackle in Wendron Street (just by a car park), that sells bait including ragworm and lugworm. Tel 01326 561640.

Tide Times for the next seven days

from 'disabled spot', but not for wheelchair users