Flood tide only Pier Not yet visited by us
Winter fallback when beaches are rough. Best from 90 minutes after low.
English Channel · England
South Devon
A coast of deep estuaries, shingle bays and red cliffs from Plymouth Sound to Seaton. Town piers and harbours give easy all-year fishing, while the rock marks between Brixham and Prawle hold wrasse, huss and pollack. The estuaries are bass nursery areas, so know the boat rules.
12 shore marks · Rules from Devon and Severn 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 South Devon
Last checked 18 October 2026Regulator: Devon and Severn IFCA. Always check its own page before you keep a fish.
- Bass: minimum size 42cm. Catch and release only from 1 February to 31 March. In January and from 1 April to 31 December you may keep 3 bass per angler per day. No bass may be taken with fixed or drift nets. These rules apply from the shore and from boats.
- Bass nursery areas: fishing for bass, or for any sea fish with sandeel bait, from a boat is banned in the Exe and the Teign from 30 April to 1 November.
- The same boat ban runs from 30 April to 1 January in the Dart, Salcombe Harbour and the Kingsbridge Estuary, the Avon and the Yealm.
- Plymouth Rivers (Tamar and Plym): the boat ban here runs all year.
- The nursery rules apply to fishing from a boat. They do not cover shore fishing.
- Devon and Severn IFCA has no permit byelaw for angling. Its inherited byelaws apply to anyone, but they set sizes for shellfish only: lobster 90mm carapace, hen crab 140mm, cock crab 160mm and scallop 100mm. Winkles that pass through a 16mm square gauge must go back. It sets no minimum size for any fish except bass.
- Shore crabs (peeler crab) must not be taken in the Exe north of a line from Starcross Yacht Club to Parsonage Stile, or in a marked area off Dawlish Warren.
- You need a D&S IFCA permit to use any net at sea, including for recreational fishing. A landing net used with a rod, and a hand-worked net of up to 4 square metres, are exempt.
- Tope: you may not land a rod-caught tope in England (Tope Order 2008). Return it to the water.
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 2026Regulator: Devon and Severn IFCA. Always check its own page before you keep a fish.
| Species | Legal minimum |
|---|---|
| Bass | 42cm |
| Lobster (carapace) | 90mm |
| Edible crab, female (width) | 140mm |
| Edible crab, male (width) | 160mm |
| Scallop (width) | 100mm |
| Other fish | None set by D&S IFCA |
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.
Headline fish
April to September
Black bream
Season
Plymouth Sound and Torbay rocks and piers. Small hooks with squid strip or ragworm, fished light.
Species guide: Black bream
All year, best autumn
Bull huss
Season
Rough rock ground near Brixham. Mackerel or a mackerel and worm cocktail on a pulley with a weak link.
Species guide: Bull huss
May to September
Smoothhound
Season
Estuary mouths and harbour edges. Peeler crab on an up-and-over rig.
Species guide: Smoothhound
May to October
Thick-lipped mullet
Season
Harbours and estuary walls. Feed a little bread and fish it straight down.
Species guide: Thick-lipped mullet
April to December
Bass
Season
Estuary mouths at dusk on surface lures, or shingle beaches on crab. Release fish under 42cm.
Species guide: Bass
Marks
The marks below are researched from public sources and local anglers' videos. We haven't fished them yet, so each is labelled Not yet visited by us. Drive times from your postcode are on the Marks page.
Fishes most states of tide Rock Not yet visited by us
Easy access from the promenade. Steps get slippery, so mind the weed.
Flood tide only Rock Not yet visited by us
Remote rock with a walk in. Calm seas only and never fish alone.
Fishes most states of tide Beach Not yet visited by us
Steep shingle that drops off fast. Spider crabs strip baits on summer nights.
Fishes most states of tide Beach Not yet visited by us
Pretty family beach. Fish the rocky corner away from summer swimmers.
Fishes most states of tide Harbour Not yet visited by us
Deep, fast water on big springs. Easier on small tides or the ebb.
Flood tide only Rock Not yet visited by us
Steep path that is risky when wet. Rough ground, so use a weak link.
Fishes most states of tide Pier Not yet visited by us
Long, safe breakwater with good all-year fishing. Popular with families.
Fishes most states of tide Pier Not yet visited by us
Town pier. Check any local signs on fishing times before you set up.
Flood tide only Estuary Not yet visited by us
Very strong tide at the mouth. Fish the flood and keep off the sand bars.
Flood tide only Estuary Not yet visited by us
Schoolie bass at dusk and mullet near the moorings. The tide rips at the mouth.
Around high water only Beach Not yet visited by us
River mouth is weedy at low. Mullet and bass push up on the high tide.
Local tips
At Dartmouth by the lower ferry, broken ground off the slipway end holds conger. The river is deep and races on big springs, so pick smaller tides or the ebb.
For Dartmouth mullet, drop a little bread down the wall beside the slipway and fish straight down the wall.
Mount Batten is the winter backup when beaches are wild and rivers flooded. Fish from about 90 minutes after low with a two-hook flapper or short pulley and sardine or peeler.
In a light tide, bend or trim two of the grip wires short. The lead then holds without locking solid in the ground.
Sharkham Point is rough ground. Use a pulley pennel with a circle hook and a weak link. An extra ten yards on the cast puts you in much deeper water.
At Sharkham, a mackerel and ragworm cocktail can pull a big bull huss. Ragworm under a float catches ballan and corkwing wrasse steadily.
At Exmouth, try a surface lure off the beach at dusk for schoolie bass. Swap trebles for single hooks to release small fish easily.
Spider crabs swarm Slapton on summer evenings and wreck bottom baits, even with a pop-up bead. Spin up fresh mackerel on a 30g metal and keep baits moving.
In our own words, cross-checked against local anglers. Rules always come from the regulator, not a video.
Crabbing on this coast: family spots, and the crab and lobster rules for every regulator, are on Crabbing. Squid: Plymouth, October to December, with medium confidence. See Squid and cuttlefish.
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
- Devon and Severn IFCA: minimum conservation reference sizes (updated July 2026)
- Devon and Severn IFCA: bass regulations and nursery areas (updated March 2026)
- Devon and Severn IFCA: byelaw book page
- Devon and Severn IFCA: Byelaw Book, March 2026 (PDF)
- Bass (Specified Areas) (Prohibition of Fishing) (Variation) Order 1999, current schedule of nursery areas
- MMO: bass fishing guidance 2026
- Tope (Prohibition of Fishing) Order 2008