Slapton

Slapton is situated on Start Bay in the South hams region of South Devon. It is a 3 mile long stretch of shingle that runs from Strete Gate in the East to Torcross village in the West. It is characterised by the Ley, an expanse of freshwater separated from the sea by the shingle beach and the road (A379). During World War II the area was used by the US Army to train for the Normandy landings. Hundreds of servicemen died when they were attacked by German boats while conducting exercises off Slapton. Two memorials commemorate those who lost their lives; one at Torcross is famous for being a Sherman tank raised from the seabed off the beach in 1984.

There are three main areas that are popular for fishing, these are located near the car parks at Strete gate, the Memorial (middle of the beach) and at Torcross. These areas can get crowded when the weather is good with sun seekers but a short 5-10min walk away from the car parks will normally see you fishing in a quiet spot. As you may expect from an area as large as this venue the fishing can be very hit and miss as the fish move up and down the beach. It is a venue where literally anything could turn up. The beach is a great place for a beginner, there is plenty of room to practice casting, deep water is close to the shore and the bottom is clean ground leading to few tackle losses.

 The fishing is poor during daylight, the odd mackerel, dogfish or flattie showing but comes into its own when the sun sets with dusk and night fishing producing the best results. In general each area of the beach fishes roughly as well as the others but with a few subtle differences, in terms of when the fish will feed and the species you are likely to encounter. For example small huss and red mullet can be caught at Torcross on a rising tide while towards the Eastern end of the beach you are more likely to encounter bass and bream when the tide ebbs to low water.

Likely Species

Bass, Black Bream, Dogfish, Whiting, Pout, Small Huss, Red Mullet, Mackerel, Scad.

Chance of catching

Garfish, Flounder, Dab, Plaice, Cod, Conger, Gilthead Bream, Dover Sole

Best Baits

Worms (rag/lug) work well for most species, Mackerel, Sandeel and Squid will catch plenty of dogfish and whiting especially in the winter months. Spinning early in the morning or just as the sun dips below the horizon is good for mackerel with the odd scad, garfish and outside chance of a bass.

Rigs

2/3 hook flapper rigs will catch the majority of species, use smallish, strong hooks (size 1 are ideal). You can put a larger squid or even peeler crab bait on a Pennell rig but this is a waiting game for bigger fish. In calm conditions a float with mackerel strip or live sandeel can be deadly for catching many of the mid water feeding species.

Dangers

WARNING – do not attempt to fish here when there is a big swell running along with an easterly wind, the waves have been know to destroy the road in the past! Big swells can also remove the shingle from under your feet.

Slapton during an easterly wind in 2009.

Directions

From Dartmouth take the A379 signposted for Stoke Fleming and Slapton. Stay on this road as it runs along the length of the beach.