Irish Sea · England

North West England

From the Mersey and the Wirral up the Fylde coast, round Morecambe Bay and on to Cumbria and the Solway. A famous winter flounder, whiting and cod coast, with summer bass, thornbacks, plaice and smoothhound. Liverpool Bay and Morecambe Bay see spring tides of around 8 to 10m, among the biggest in Britain, so many marks fish only around high water.

14 shore marks · Rules from North Western IFCA, checked 18 October 2026

Stay safe on this coast

  • Tides. Know the time of high water and your way off before you go out. Marks that fish around high water or on the flood can cut you off.
  • Cut-offs. Sandbanks, causeways and headlands flood from behind. After storms, re-walk even a familiar beach in daylight.
  • Rock. Watch the sea for 10 minutes before you go down: big waves come in sets. Wet weed is like ice. Never fish rock alone in the dark.
  • Lifejacket. Wear a lifejacket (PFD) on rocks, piers and walls, with the crotch strap fastened.
  • Emergency. Call 999 or 112 and ask for the Coastguard. Never go in after someone: call, and throw something that floats.

More in Rules and safety.

Rules

Rules in North West England

Last checked 18 October 2026

Regulator: North Western IFCA. Always check its own page before you keep a fish.

  • Bass: keep up to 3 a day per angler, from shore or boat, from 1 April to 31 January, each at least 42cm (tip of the snout to the end of the tail). From 1 February to 31 March every bass goes back.
  • Bass nursery areas: the Dee Estuary (Wirral and Flintshire) and around Heysham Power Station (Morecambe Bay), 31 May to 1 October. In those dates you may not fish for bass from a boat, or fish for anything from a boat using sandeel as bait. Shore fishing is allowed, but return small bass carefully.
  • Rays: from Cheshire to Cumbria, any skate or ray must measure 45cm from wing tip to wing tip before you keep it.
  • Tope: it is illegal to land a rod-caught tope in England (Tope Order 2008). Unhook it in the water and let it go.
  • Piers, ports and harbours are private property with their own rules. Seaforth needs a permit; some piers are club-only, closed for repairs, or ban casting in summer.
  • You don't need a licence to sea fish. You do need an Environment Agency rod licence to fish for salmon, sea trout, freshwater fish or eels, including in tidal rivers. Flounder fishing up the Mersey is fine; targeting sea trout is not.

Rules change, usually each spring. Where a rule says check locally, ask the regulator or harbour office before you fish.

Minimum sizes

Last checked 18 October 2026

Regulator: North Western IFCA. Always check its own page before you keep a fish.

Minimum sizes
SpeciesLegal minimum
Bass42cm
Cod35cm
Whiting27cm
Haddock30cm
Pollack30cm
Coalfish (saithe)35cm
Ling63cm
Mackerel20cm
Herring20cm
Horse mackerel (scad)15cm
Hake27cm
Plaice27cm
Dover sole24cm
Lemon sole25cm
Flounder25cm
Dab15cm
Turbot30cm
Brill30cm
Any skate or ray45cm wingspan
Conger58cm
Black bream23cm
Thick-lipped mullet20cm

Tip of the snout to the end of the tail. Use the strictest figure you know as your own minimum.

Rules change, usually each spring. Where a rule says check locally, ask the regulator or harbour office before you fish.

Local notes

  • Never walk out onto Morecambe Bay or Solway sands. The channels move, the flood comes in faster than you can run, and the quicksand is real.
  • Hilbre Island is cut off for hours around high water: check the crossing times at West Kirby. Tommy Legs at Silloth cuts off quickly.
  • Never block a Wirral slipway.

Headline fish

The fish that peak on this coast, from the Irish Sea calendar.

Best October to February

Cod and codling

Season

The north-east rock edges hold cod all year. In the west, wait for the first autumn blow and coloured water.

Species guide: Cod and codling

Best October to January

Whiting

Season

Night tides from October to January. Small baits on three hooks out-fish big ones.

Species guide: Whiting

Best June to September

Pollack

Season

Dusk over kelp. Wind a soft lure slowly; pollack follow and take on the move.

Species guide: Pollack

Best July to August

Mackerel

Season

Shoals push in on warm, calm summer evenings. Take only what you will eat or freeze for bait.

Species guide: Mackerel

Best June to August

Garfish

Season

They often arrive just ahead of the mackerel in May. Fish a float shallow, at about a metre.

Species guide: Garfish

Best June to October

Bass

Season

Surf and estuary mouths at dawn and dusk from June to October. North-east bass are rarer, but the numbers are rising.

Species guide: Bass

Best June to September

Ballan wrasse

Season

Great sport on Texas-rigged plastics in summer. Fish over kelp at low water.

Species guide: Ballan wrasse

Best October to January

Pouting

Season

Over rough ground after dark. They strip baits meant for cod.

Species guide: Pouting

Best December to January

Rockling

Season

A winter bite on the north-east piers when nothing else is feeding.

Species guide: Rockling

Best November to March

Dab

Season

Winter and early spring on clean sand. Small hooks (size 4–1) catch more.

Species guide: Dab

Best October to March

Flounder

Season

The Mersey, Dee and Tyne are classic. Fish the flood tide with a spoon or beads above a crab bait.

Species guide: Flounder

Best May to August

Plaice

Season

Fish clean sand from spring into summer. Beads and a long, slow-moving bait help.

Species guide: Plaice

Best June to September

Dover sole

Season

Calm summer nights on sandy and muddy beaches, close in. Use small hooks (size 4–2).

Species guide: Dover sole

Best April to June

Thornback ray

Season

Silloth, Rossall and North Wales on the flood in spring. Rare on the north-east coast.

Species guide: Thornback ray

Best June to August

Smoothhound

Season

Summer evenings on the Mersey, Wirral and North Wales beaches. They take crab and run hard.

Species guide: Smoothhound

Best July to November

Lesser spotted dogfish

Season

Present most of the year in the west. Bigger hooks and baits help avoid them, but they still take a whole squid.

Species guide: Lesser spotted dogfish

Best April to May and September to October

Bull huss

Season

North Wales rock marks at night. Use a strong trace; the skin wears through light snoods.

Species guide: Bull huss

Best May to October

Conger eel

Season

Harbour walls and wrecks at night. Pump it up hard and give no slack.

Species guide: Conger eel

Best June to August

Tope

Season

Summer boats out of North Wales and Morecambe Bay. Use a circle hook, don't strike, and unhook in the water.

Species guide: Tope

Best June to August

Gurnard

Season

Summer boat fishing off Cumbria and North Wales; tub gurnard have bright blue-edged fins.

Species guide: Gurnard

Best July to August

Black bream

Season

Off Anglesey and the Llŷn on summer reefs. Use light gear and small hooks.

Species guide: Black bream

Best June to September

Thick-lipped mullet

Season

Calm harbours in summer. Feed mashed bread, then fish a tiny hook on a long, light trace.

Species guide: Thick-lipped mullet

Marks

Marks in this region are places we fish. Drive times from your postcode are on the Marks page.

Crabbing on this coast: family spots, and the crab and lobster rules for every regulator, are on Crabbing.

Local tackle and bait shops, charter boats and clubs: we're building these lists. Run one? Add it free.

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.

Sources