Holiday in Shaldon Devon

[Steve_640]

While I was on holiday in Shaldon (opposite side of the river to Teignmouth) in August I managed to squeeze in three fishing trips. Although the result of my trips was poor (3 Makerel, 1 school Bass and a starfish) I did learn enough about the location by talking to other people and watching their results to stand a better chance next time. So I thought I would post this report in case it can help anyone else.

Like me the majority of people fishing there are on holiday and many make the same mistakes as i did.

1) Probably the most important thing is that if you are fishing for Bass then Shaldon beach should be fished at low tide, from opposite the spit to the far end of the submerged breakwater. The most productive spot appeared to be just before the start of the breakwater at the lighthouse end.

2) If using Live sand eels make sure that the pump is actually puming air into the bucket rather than just making a noise, otherwise like me you will end up with a bucket of dead and sick sand eels by the time you get to Shaldon.

3) Due to the large ammount of weed and rocks bottom fishing proved to be expensive on tackle and spinning seems to be the preferred tactic, using an artificial eel (eddystone type) with a swivel and 1oz weight about 3-4 feet up the line from the eel. One guy seemed to have considerable success with this method.

4) Makerel can be caught using a dexter wedge cast towards the spit from the end of the beach at high tide. However fishing from the Teignmouth side appeared to be far more productive.

5) Judging by the amount of tackle I found on the NESS beach on a very low tide, there is obviously a fair bit of fishing done here although during the summer due to the number of people on the beach you will be limited to early morning and evenings. I am not sure whether the gate to the tunnel is locked at night. Being a fisherman I felt very guilty about the amount of fishing tackle I found and collected and binned as much as I could.

In the two weeks I was there I didn't see a decent sized Bass being caught from the Shaldon side, with most being under the limit, although a considerable number of people seemed to be ignoring the size limit.

My advice would therefore be, other than at low tide, catch the ferry to teignmouth where there are more options.

Steve.

[pingu]

nice report steve, good info thanks

[Fishing Forum Admin]

Great read mate