Sea Fishing In Cumbria

The Cumbrian Coast Has A Huge Tidal Range

The Cumbrian coast from port Carlisle to St bees heads is a diverse stretch of coastline, offering estuary sport of the highest calibre for flounder fishing, to deep rock marks for cod, conger, pollack and wrasse. With one of the biggest tidal ranges in England its as if someone has pulled the plug out at times, a big spring tide would be 10.0 metres and ebbing to -0.3 uncovering vast areas of beach at low tide, making for some interesting and demanding low water fishing.
On these low water marks safety is paramount and a compass or gps and mobile phone are vital pieces of equipment, I have been caught out myself and don't intend making the mistake again.

Tackle For Fishing The West Coast

Tackling up for fishing west Cumbria can be as simple as a general purpose beach rod and reel or rods and reels ranging from rock rods to spinning rods, It all depends on the individual and what they want. Personally I like a bit of sport and have a range of tackle but its not necessary. The one item that is a necessity is a pair of chest waders.

West Coast Fishing Calendar

The years fishing usually starts slowly as the early months of the year are usually poor for fishing, Then as April arrives it picks up with the plaice and flounder returning from spawning and ready to feed. In May the bass start to show on the beaches staying right through till late October, which is when the codling arrive and most anglers turn their attention to them.

North West Fishing Marks - Silloth And Port Carlilse

Now onto the fishing, starting at the upper Solway marks from Port Carlisle to Silloth these marks have one thing in common - the flounder, they can be caught over high water from the grassy banks at port Carlisle, whereas Skinburness and Silloth are low water fishing marks with eels, dabs ,very odd bass and plaice making up the catches. Peeler crab is the best bait by a long way.

north west fishing marks silloth and port carlilse

Tackle for Port Carlilse and Silloth includes :two hook flappers, size 1/0 hooks down and a variety of weights.

Fishing From Silloth To Allonby

The stretch of coast between Silloth and Allonby are very popular with the bass anglers, on a good day its possible to catch a good few fish along with flounder, plaice and eels.

allonby sea fishing

A nice soft south westerly wind that's putting a surf on but not colouring the water too much is my personal favourite sea. Tide size isn't that important you will know if the bass are running the beach when your rod tip pulls down. The choice to fish low or high water is down to the individual with the first two hours of the flood and two hours before high the peak times. Bass to double figures are possible at these marks but few and far between these days. Baitwise king rag is the best although lug and crab catch plenty of fish as well.

Allonby To Maryport

Allonby to Maryport is best fished autumn through to winter for codling and sometimes dogfish, these marks are mixed ground and can produce some very good match bags of fish in excess of 30lb. Again these are shallow marks and hard work to fish. I usually take a rucksack and two fishbags, one for bait one for my fish and with the tide flooding and the fish feeding hard it can be exhausting fishing. My best bag was 34lb of fish and you know when you've had that around your neck for a couple of hours.

Maryport prom and piers are very popular with anglers all year round for plaice in spring and summer, and codling in the winter months, with the inner harbour fishing for eels and flounder as well as a good head of mullet. Again the prom is mixed ground but you wont lose too much gear on here.

Maryport To Harrington

Maryport through to Harrington pier covers some of the best codling and plaice fishing marks in west Cumbria. Clean sand mixed with semi rough ground means plenty of feed for the fish. Again the tide drops away a lot but it gets less and less the further west we go.
Hotspots are Grasslot, Flimby, Siddick, BlackBbank and Salterbeck with plenty of marks within those areas to get your teeth into. A lot of fish are taken off these marks in spring when the plaice fishing peaks, and again from October onwards when the codling arrive.
If you have peeler crab or lug and rag you wont go far wrong here. Normal beach gear will do fine for fishing in this area. Low water is the most popular time to fish but watch out for the flood on some marks, with a sea pushing it in it can be hard work staying in contact with the fish.

Cumbria's Best Cod Marks

Now onto three of the best cod venues in Cumbria: Harrington, Lowca and Parton.

cod fishing in cumbria

It is all rough ground fishing along here so expect to lose some tackle and gear up accordingly 25-35lb mainline and a rotten bottom,2/0 to 6/0 hooks the choice is yours my preference is a 3 or 4/0. Access from Harrington side is park in the seafront car parks and fish anywhere you like from literally next to the pier to crag toes which is the point you will see in the distance about a mile away. From Lowca you park near the sewage works and go under the railway and walk along the rocky beach, its hard going but worth it to reach some of the more distant marks. Again there are many marks along here some of them more obvious than others and a bit of practise and experience on here can pay big dividends. Lowca is my favourite of these venues and some good match bags of 20 lb plus are regularly caught and a 30lb plus bag is always on the cards as well, the average size of the codlings will be better on these westerly marks too.

Fishing On Whitehaven Piers

Whitehaven piers used to be noted for the big cod that used to frequent the area, now though they are better known for fast and furious tiddler bashing, dabs, and whiting making up the bulk of fish, though most of the whiting are small.

St Bees Cliffs

Last but certainly not least is the mighty cliffs of St Bees Heads where access to the north heads is physically demanding, with either several near vertical paths one called the chain for obvious reasons, or a walk round to Fleswick Bay taking half an hour all downhill on the way there and a killer on the way back with a good bag of fish. Again there are many marks down here with the hotspots usually located at the bottom of the paths, plenty of codling with the best chance of one to double figures in Cumbria from here. Also some good conger eels are pulled out of here every year but probably more are lost every year due to the snaggy, ground, pollack, wrasse, dogfish, dabs, whiting, pouting, rockling, bass and coalies among other species can also turn up. Rough ground tackle is the norm on here though if its quiet a good cast can get you among the clean ground and the fish, but in the main the codling will be feeding closer in on the rough ground. Crab and worm are best baits but mackerel is always worth taking with you.
on the match fishing scene there are five or six clubs some of them fishing a match 52 weeks of the year and others not as active locally preferring to travel a bit more.
there is also quite a few opens throughout the year mostly in spring and autumn/winter.

Health and safety

Angling from the shore in the uk is very hazardous to say the least. Every year lives are lost whilst pursuing our fascination with angling in the sea. Anglers of all levels of ability need to be very very careful indeed. At this point I would like to offer a few words of advice to anglers.

Never attempt to fish a new area without the help and advice of someone experienced in fishing that area.

Always check the tide and ensure you will be safe to access and exit your chosen area. Watch out for cut off points. If unsure don't go. Its not worth it.

Be aware of the weather forecast. Conditions can change fast.

Don't access closed areas, eg piers whilst the storm gates are shut.

Carry some form of communication.

Tell someone where you are going and when you intend to return. Ask them to raise the alarm should you not return.

Do not fish heavy seas. Its very dangerous and your wasting your time anyway, fish don't like really rough seas. Leave it a day or 2 until the sea is dieing.