Local Sea-Fishing Guides
Region-by-region guides to target species, marks and conditions
Cornwall
England, UK
The Atlantic surf coast of south-west England — bass surf-fishing mecca, summer mackerel and pollack on the kelp edges, with autumn bluefin tuna increasingly raiding the headlands.
Devon
England, UK
South Devon estuaries and red-sandstone surf, north Devon Atlantic exposure. Famed for spring bass in surf gulleys, plaice on sandbanks, big pollack on wrecks offshore.
Solent & Hampshire
England, UK
Bass nursery zone with strict legal protection, big plaice on Calshot banks, thick-lipped mullet on the Lymington and Beaulieu estuaries. Sheltered fishing year-round.
Pembrokeshire
Wales, UK
Atlantic surf and clean rocky shore around St Davids and the Castlemartin range. Bass, big bull huss, smoothhound, ballan wrasse — wild west Wales fishing at its purest.
Norfolk
England, UK
The classic English winter-beach codfishing coast — Cromer, Sheringham, Happisburgh. Long-range surfcasting tradition, with summer bass, dab and whiting in colder months.
Yorkshire Coast
England, UK
The Whitby, Filey and Bridlington cod tradition. Strong charter boat scene, big pollack and ling on the deep wrecks, conger on the rough ground, winter codling from the beach.
Hebrides & West Coast Scotland
Scotland, UK
Wild Atlantic seaboard from the Inner Hebrides through Skye, Lewis and Harris. Big pollack and coalfish on deep reefs, sea trout in the sea lochs, blue shark in summer offshore.
West Cork
Ireland
The Atlantic peninsulas — Mizen, Sheep's Head, Beara. Iconic Irish bass coast, big pollack on the kelp drop-offs, blue shark in summer offshore, conger and ling on the rough.
Kerry
Ireland
Dingle, Iveragh, Beara. Big pollack on the deep marks, bass on the Maharees surf, blue shark and porbeagle offshore, ray and turbot on the sand patches.
Connemara & Galway
Ireland
The drowned-coast inlets of west Galway. Sea trout in the brackish bays, pollack and wrasse on the rocky shore, bass on the surf strands of Aran, and salmon at sea off the headlands.
Brittany
France — Finistère & Morbihan
The Atlantic-facing edge of France. Pollack, bass and big wrasse on the granite reefs, mackerel and bonito offshore in summer, conger and ling on the deep wrecks.
Asturias
Spain — Cantabrian coast
The cliff-and-cove Cantabrian seaboard. Year-round sea bass on the surf gulleys and rock marks, big white seabream (sargo) on the cliffs, octopus and squid from the harbours, summer bonito offshore.
Galicia
Spain — North-west
The rias — deep-cut estuarine inlets where Atlantic salinity meets brackish water. Gilthead bream, white seabream, sea bass, common octopus and European squid year-round; mackerel and bonito offshore.
Basque Coast
Spain & France — Bay of Biscay
San Sebastián to Biarritz. Bay of Biscay sea bass, summer bonito and albacore runs, white seabream and bream species on the rock marks, anchovy bait-fish dominating the food chain.
Algarve
Portugal — South coast
Limestone cliffs and warm Atlantic shelf. White seabream, two-banded bream and common dentex on the rock marks, summer bonito and little tunny offshore, octopus year-round.
Costa Brava
Spain — Catalonia
Rocky Catalan coast, microtidal Mediterranean. Sparid-dense — white seabream, two-banded bream, common dentex — plus cephalopods, summer amberjack and leerfish around the rocky points.
Balearics
Spain — Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza, Formentera
Limestone coves, clear Mediterranean water, sparid-and-cephalopod fishery. Dorada, dentex, amberjack, common octopus and European squid year-round; bluefin tuna passing offshore in summer.
Croatian Dalmatia
Croatia — Adriatic
Karst-shore Adriatic, archipelago of pine-shaded islands. Sparid-and-cephalopod inshore fishery, summer bluefin tuna runs through the Velebit Channel, strong eging/squidding culture.
Greek Aegean
Greece — Cyclades & Sporades
Volcanic island shores and limestone coves of the central and northern Aegean. Sparid-and-cephalopod inshore fishery, growing bluefin tuna presence, and the increasing Lessepsian migrant pressure.
Dutch Zeeland Coast
Netherlands
The Oosterschelde and Westerschelde tidal channels, the North Sea beach. Plaice and sole on the sand banks, sea bass increasingly through summer, big eels in the inland tidal waters.
Polish Baltic Coast
Poland
Reduced-salinity Baltic, Gdańsk Bay through the Hel Peninsula. Spring sea trout from the surf, summer pikeperch in the brackish bays, garfish runs in April–June; cod fishery currently constrained.
Cape Cod & Southern New England
USA — Massachusetts & Rhode Island
The cradle of American recreational sea fishing. Striped bass surf and boat, summer bluefish blitzes, false albacore runs in autumn, tautog on the rocks, fluke on the sand.
Mid-Atlantic Bight
USA — NJ, DE, MD, VA
The summer flounder, striped bass and bluefish heartland. Inshore bays for fluke and weakfish; offshore wrecks for tog, scup and black sea bass; surf bass through the cooler months.
Outer Banks & Carolinas
USA — North Carolina
Surf red drum, Spanish and king mackerel, cobia spring run, false albacore autumn blitzes off Cape Lookout. Where Gulf Stream warm water meets the cold Labrador current — exceptional pelagic action.
Florida Keys
USA — Florida
The flats fishing grand slam: bonefish, tarpon, permit on the same tide. Snappers, groupers, sailfish, mahi-mahi and wahoo offshore. The most prestigious saltwater fly fishing destination on Earth.
Florida West Coast
USA — Florida — Tampa Bay to Naples
Year-round flats fishing on the Gulf side. Snook, redfish, speckled seatrout on the grass flats and mangrove edges; tarpon migrations through summer; tripletail on flotsam offshore.
Texas Coast
USA — Texas
Galveston Bay, Corpus Christi, the Laguna Madre — one of the world's great hyper-saline lagoons. Redfish, specs, flounder year-round; tarpon offshore; jacks and ladyfish on the surf.
Southern California & Channel Islands
USA — California
Kelp forest fishing on the Channel Islands, calico bass on the inshore reefs, white seabass at dawn, yellowtail and summer bluefin offshore. Hub of the American kelp-forest sportfishing tradition.
Pacific Northwest
USA — Washington & Oregon
Puget Sound and the Oregon coast — Pacific salmon (king, coho, pink, chum), Pacific halibut on the open shelf, lingcod and the Pacific rockfish complex on the reefs.
Baja California Sur & Cabo
Mexico — Baja California Sur
Where the Pacific meets the Sea of Cortez. Roosterfish on the East Cape beaches, dorado and striped marlin offshore, yellowfin tuna runs, pargo and grouper on the inshore reefs.