The best places for sea fishing in East of England

by

Sarah Smithson

All anglers have a place they love returning to because of some happy fish-catching memories they hold. The destination at the top of my list is Sea Palling which has produced all kinds of species for me in the past, as well as some of my best ever sea fishing experience. Although the beach has never produced a lunker for me, there is just something special about being there and enjoying a deep-set feeling of contentment and well-being when I am perched on my tackle box watching the tips of my sea fishing rods.

Sea Palling is a charming little coastal village very popular with so many tourists as well as fishermen. This village lies between Waxham and Eccles -On-Sea and has always been under the threat from sea and had a bit of a violent history. Part of Sea Palling disappeared under the waves together with its church and the large estate of Gelham Hall. One of the earliest accounts was written by John of Oxendes, a monk at nearby St. Benet’s Abbey, in which he relates the destruction brought by the great storm of 1287″ .. the sea, agitated by the violence of the wind, burst through its accustomed limits, occupying towns, fields and other places adjacent to the coast …. it suffocated and drowned men and women sleeping in their beds, with infants in their cradles …. and it tore up houses from their foundations, with all they contained and threw them into the sea with irrevocable damage”. Several more incursions occurred over the centuries and by 1604 the neighbouring village had also lost 56 houses and over 900 acres of land. Just 3 years later Sea Palling’s defences were breached one more time as well as the neighbouring Waxham was flooded in 1655 and 1741 also taking away the first local sea fishing tackle UK shop. Lack of proper maintenance of the dunes led to continuous breaches and it was not until the 19th century that a programme of sea defence work was started. The great storm of 31 January 1953 took the lives of 7 Sea Palling villagers – part of the 100 who perished in Norfolk alone. (A memorial plaque is in St Margaret’s Church). Following this tragedy the sea wall was extended in 1986 and in 1995 the Environment Agency undertook a multi-million pound project erecting nine barrier reefs. I have always found the sea angling easy at Sea Palling and I hoped that this time was also going to be a nice experience for me. Last time I was here, I remember standing on top of a sand dune totally captivated by the sight of massive waves surged over the 12 feet high concrete defence wall. It was an incredible spectacle to witness. It was a one-off experience but one I may yet relive as sea levels rise. My latest trip was a three-day stint and I arrived at my haven armed with some cracking bait bought from the Angling Direct sea fishing tackle UK in Norwich, Norfolk. The shop supplied me with some massive gutted black lug – the size of which I haven’t seen in ages, along with some common lug and unwashed squid. These baits are perfect for cod along the East Anglia coast. It is hard to come by a good sea fishing shops in UK, this is why I like Angling Direct they always have a good selection of products and helpful staff. I also like to get my sea fishing tackle online. For this session my plan is to fish an afternoon session followed by two days at the shoreline. Hopefully all this effort should result in a good size cod being caught. The trick to success when sea fishing is to find the right casting place, and this is precisely what I like about Sea Palling as its full of such places. I have used the same routine here ever since I first cast a line of its beach. I park up and immediately rush over the sand dune to observe the sea conditions, as well as looking for the position of any sand bars by spotting waves becoming bigger as they pass over the shallower water and the holes will show as calm, flat areas. I can also gauge the stage at which the tide is at without referring to a tide time line. I soon found what I was after – the end of a sand bar leading into a hole where sea fishing tackle would certainly gather. This was where I would fish. Previously I have caught on all stages of the tide here, although I do prefer the second half of the flood until the second half of the receding tide, so I would start my quest straight away and get my sea fishing rods unpacked. For some unknown to me reason, I always seen to set up my sea fishing gear here faster than anywhere else. Maybe it’s because I feel really focused when I am here. When sea fishing, I like to start as far out as possible to find the deeper water. In order to achieve great distance I use a single clipped-down paternoster with 3/0 hooks, loaded with black lug, and a flat-back lead to tow it out. A Daiwa 7th turbo, loaded with 15lb Ultima Powertseel and 80lb shock-leader, strapped to a Century Tip Tornado Super Sport sea fishing rod, made my life easy to achieve this distance. I had a second sea rod ready for close-range sea fishing, in a gulley on the inside of the sand bar, which had a three-hook flapper baited with common lug to search out any smaller stuff. To assist me, I used size one hooks as a pyramid lead from Gareth’s Weights. These sinkers are great in slow to medium tide runs, as they can hold out sufficiently and can also be easily moved, by raising the rod tip or cranking the reel handle, when it can trot for a bit then settle again. This is ideal for covering plenty of ground. You can probably find them in any of your local sea fishing shops or you can get find them in any sea fishing tackle online shop. The long range sea rod was showing no signs of movement, but the close one suddenly started to rattle pretty much straight away. I knew this was a whiting, although I was hoping it might just be a dab as I fancied a one of those for my diner. But when a double shot of whiting broke surface I feared the worst. It was a nice sight, but I really wanted something bigger. With these little fellas in abundance my one hope was that large cod would be homing in to feed on them. That is when I noticed the long rod’s tip twitch – defiantly a whiting – so I left it out there as live bait. Sadly nothing took the live bait and, after an hour or so, I decided it was time to reel in. the hooked whiting was fine and swam away; unaware it had been the unwilling bait for much larger prey. Meanwhile, the three-hook setup had got me dozens of pin whiting. The tide had turned and way on its way out, which meant I would give it at least three more hours, maybe the better fish might show on the ebb. But only whiting were interested in my offering, so it was time to call it a day. Instinct told me that the codling simply weren’t here, so contingency plan was in order.

Good

sea fishing shops

are hard to find. This is why I like Angling Direct. You can find their shop in Norwich, Wroxham and London. Alternatively, visit Angling Direct

sea fishing tackle online

superstore where you can find all latest fishing products at great prices. At the moment you can save up to 45 per cent on

sea fishing rods

.

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The best places for sea fishing in East of England