200 shore marks

Marks

Shore marks around Great Britain: beaches, rock, piers, harbours and estuaries. Enter your postcode or use your location to sort them by distance, with a rough drive time. Tap a mark's region for its rules and local tips.

Skip the mapMap of 200 sea fishing marks around Great BritainShetland
  • Beach
  • Rock
  • Pier or harbour
  • Sea wall
  • Estuary or shore
Tap a dot for the mark, or an area for its region. Dots show the general area of each mark, not the exact spot. Northern Ireland and Ireland are shown faintly and aren't covered.

Map of marks

Every mark in the guide, coloured by ground. Tap a dot for its own page, with tides, fish, rules and directions, or an area to open that region. Filters below fade the dots that don't match.

  • 65 beach
  • 36 rock
  • 72 pier or harbour
  • 15 sea wall
  • 12 estuary or shore

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About these marks

Visited and researched

Marks in North Wales, the North West, Yorkshire and Northumberland are places we fish. The rest are researched from public sources and local anglers' videos, and are labelled Not yet visited by us.

Drive times

A rough estimate from straight-line distance with no traffic. Use Directions for the real route. Your postcode is sent only to postcodes.io to find its location (see Privacy).

Access

Access rules and permits change, and piers close for repairs. Check with the owner, harbour office or a local tackle shop before your first visit.

Before you go

  • Tide times for the nearest port: EasyTide (UK Hydrographic Office).
  • Wind and sea state: Met Office inshore waters forecast.
  • Access to piers, harbours and ports changes. Check with the owner or harbour office before your first visit.

Estuaries and tidal rivers

Sheltered water, small baits and a flooding tide. Estuaries are a good place to start, but the rules are different once you're fishing for fish that also live in fresh water.

Autumn to spring

Flounder

Fish the flood tide with peeler crab, ragworm or lug on a spreader, or with a spoon or beads above the bait. Estuary fish can taste muddy; skin them before cooking.

Summer

Thick-lipped mullet

Shoals cruise calm harbours and estuaries in summer. Feed mashed bread, then fish a tiny hook on a long, light trace, or try small pieces of ragworm on a size 10.

Spring to autumn

Sea trout

A protected game fish, not a sea fish. If you hook one by accident while sea fishing, return it quickly. Don't target sea trout unless you have the licence or written permission described below.

Summer and autumn

School bass

Many estuaries are bass nursery areas with boat restrictions. Shore fishing is allowed, but return small bass carefully. Each region page lists its nursery areas.

Rod licence and permission

Last checked 18 October 2026
  • England and Wales: you don't need a licence to sea fish. You do need an England and Wales rod fishing licence to fish for salmon, sea trout, trout, freshwater fish, smelt or eel, including in tidal rivers. Flounder fishing up an estuary is fine; targeting sea trout is not. GOV.UK: fishing licences
  • Scotland: Salmon and sea trout: in Scotland it is a criminal offence to fish for them without the rights holder's written permission, in fresh water or in the sea within 1.5km of low water, even from the shore. Fisheries Management Scotland says there is no general right to fish for sea trout in the sea or tidal waters. Scottish Government: recreational fishing
  • Every eel must go back alive.

Rules for rivers and estuaries vary locally, and some estuary stretches are controlled by clubs or landowners. Check locally before you fish.