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CRICCIETH WEST
A mixture of rough and clean ground offers plenty of year-round opportunities at this North Wales venue GREAT S E A ANGLINGVENUES●GREAT S E A ANGLINGVENUES●
To get the best results, use two 1213ft beachcasters O verlooked by the imposing Criccieth Castle there is a small sandy beach directly adjacent to the castle rocks. e beach gives way to wooden groynes and rough boulder ground as you head west along Marine Terrace Road. e beach ends at the mouth of the Afon Dwyfor (river). It off ers a variety of fi sh but in summer is best fished at night when tourist activity is more limited. Terrace Road. e beach ends at the mouth of Your insight into the best shore and boat fi shing that the UK and Ireland have to off er SPECIES
Target fl ounders during the summer
Summer: e sandy beach section before the rough ground starts is mainly clean sand straight out in front of you but gets rougher as you work towards the groynes. It can produce you work towards the groynes. It can produce the odd thornback ray, but typical summer species are fl ounder, bass, dogfi sh, turbot, mackerel and garfi sh. e rough ground produces bass to plugs, spinners and baits, also produces bass to plugs, spinners and baits, also the odd huss at night.
Winter: e beach section is a good dab mark from November onwards through to March. Close casts will take fl ounder and school bass, with good numbers of whiting from September until the end of January. Huss show again in the autumn to Christmas period if the weather is generally mild. e odd bigger bass can still show from the boulder ground, especially as a good sea is fi ning down after onshore winds.
TACTICS
To get the best results fi sh two standard 12/13ft beachcasters with multiplier reels, 18lb mono and a 60lb shock leader. Alternatively, 14/15ft European style rods matched to a 7000 or 8000 sized fi xed spool
reel loaded with 30lb braid and shock leader. Have one rod out with a bigger fi sh bait at medium to long range over the sand in the summer for the chance of a ray. Fish the other rod with a 3-hook fl apper rig and size 4 Aberdeen’s from 20 to 40 yards out. is will take the general species which tend to come in close at night. Five to 6oz grip leads are ideal.
To fi sh the rough ground fi sh a standard 5/6oz 13ft beachcaster with a tough geared reel such as the PENN 525Mag series and load it with 22lb line and a 60lb shock leader if you’re targeting the huss. Bass on baits involves close range casting of no more than 30 yards into the rocks with a 2-4oz bass rod and a reel loaded with 22lb line.
In all cases fi sh low water up to high and the fi rst hour back. Night tides fi sh best, but daylight can be ok out of the tourist season if the water is carrying some colour. A wind from the southwest or west is best, but southerlies will also produce.
Plugging and spinning over the boulders is a top summer and autumn bass tactic. Fish it on a rising tide early and late in the day with low light levels. Surface poppers work well here.
RIGS & BAITS
For the rays, fi sh a pulley rig ending in a 3/0 Mustad Viking 79515 hook. e same rig works well for the huss but increase the hook size to a 4/0 and add a weak link system to the rig to allow the lead to be lost when fi shing into the rougher ground. For the dabs and whiting at range, you can’t beat a 2-hook loop rig armed with size 4 Aberdeen hooks. A second rod fi shed closer in is better with a simple 3-hook Flapper rig, again with size 4 Aberdeens, and fi sh this to a slightly slack line to keep all the baits hard on the seabed. Watch the slack in the line for lift bites. Garfi sh will take a popped-up bait just out from the tide line in daylight.
Use a sliding paternoster with a short 10-inch hook length from 20lb fl uorocarbon for the rough ground bass and a size 3/0 to 4/0 hook. Leads need only be an ounce or so as they will hold in the boulders but not snag too easily.
e bass are best targeted with peeler crab but will take big lug baits too. e huss and rays take mackerel, or sandeel, tipped with squid or mackerel. Over sand, mackerel strip, blow lug, black lug and ragworm are the most consistent. In the post-Christmas period after a gale and in a settling sea, razorfi sh can be very good, especially at close range. ■
NEED TO KNOW
GETTING THERE
Off the main A497 coming west from Porthmadog, as you come down the hill into Criccieth take a left turn signposted Traeth (Beach), drive over the railway level-crossing and turn right along Castle Street. As you pass the castle on your left you come to Marine Terrace and the beach is immediately on your left as you go down the hill. There is some roadside parking but during May to September this can be very limited. There is alternative parking on the promenade east of the castle and in the town.
TACKLE SHOPS ■ Criccieth Tackle Box, 45 High
