If you think of fishing the Bristol Channel, you’d probably have an image of tackle hungry rocks and fast tides in your head. But there are far easier options that are kinder on your rig wallet….
Jansen Teakle offers up an easy Bristol Channel fishing spot that can fish extremely well and doesn’t require a mountainous hike loaded up like a Sherpa to reach it!
Brean and Berrow beaches attract plenty of holidaymakers throughout the summer months, but their potential as fishing venues is often overlooked and many anglers head for the rock promontory known as Brean Down, to the north of Bridgwater Bay.
Brean and Berrow beaches have numerous access points along their length and can be incredibly productive on their day.
Safety first
It’s important to get your head around tides before anything else as every year vehicles that have been parked on the beach fall foul of the rapidly encroaching tide and have to be winched from the mud. At those locations where parking on the beach is permitted, pay close attention to high water times and the height of the tide. Use the Weston-super-Mare tide table as a reference point and be sure to park in designated safe areas. If in doubt, check with parking attendants.
Species
When it comes to fishing, the summer months can be excellent for a variety of species including bass, sole, flounder, thornback rays and conger. In recent years some big smoothhounds have also added to the potential target species here.
Aim to start fishing 3 hours before high tide. Any earlier and you could be knee-deep in mud. The mud itself is not dangerous and I’ve yet to encounter the fictional mud that could swallow a man whole, but deep mud is strength sapping and combined with a fast incoming tide, could spell disaster. The hour after high tide can also be productive, so don’t pack up too soon.
As a general rule, the bigger tides should be fished at the northern end of the beach (Brean) and smaller tides towards the south (Berrow).
Fishing tackle
Tackle doesn’t need to be complicated and a big cast is seldom required. A fixed spool or multiplier reel loaded up with 15-18lb mainline and a shock leader will cope with anything and should be fished on a light beach caster capable of casting up to 6oz of lead.
On larger tides, you will encounter a moderate left to right tide run, but on neap tides this is less prominent. Fishing with two rods allows you to try different tactics and I would recommend a two or three hook flapper or clipped down rig on one rod armed with size #1 hooks and a pulley rig on the second rod carrying either a 3/0 Pennel rig or a single size 4/0 dongle rig.
Baits
The number one bait here is undoubtedly the lugworm which are plentiful on this vast expanse of sand. Take a fork with you and aim to arrive an hour early to dig enough bait to fish with. The best digging is often towards the top of the beach. Lugworm will take sole and bass, but it has been known to take smoothhounds. Squid and bluey baits fished on the second rod will account for rays, congers and the odd dogfish.
Tactics
The walk back method is a tried and tested way of getting your bigger bait in to deep water without having to cast it there. Make sure your reel holds plenty of line, and lob your baited rig in to the shallows when you start. As the tide advances, continue paying out line for as long as possible, walking your rod and tripod up the beach as the tide floods over the sand. Be sure to travel light so you have the bare minimum of kit to move with.
The second rod carrying the two hook flapper can be cast extremely close. This is where the majority of the bass and sole are caught, but remember to check your baits regularly. The warm shallow water attracts a lot of shrimps that can strip baits very quickly, so change them around every 15-20 minutes if they are out in force. If you think you’ve cast your worm baits too close in, you probably have not.
A late evening or early morning tide is preferable at this time of year to avoid holiday makers and other water users, but on its day these beaches can fish just as well as those rough ground marks that the Bristol Channel is famed for.
