Half Moon Bay - Heysham
Half Moon Bay at Heysham is a fantastic all year round low-water sea fishing mark that is home to an abundance of different species. During the summer months this is one of the most popular smooth hound marks, with some fantastic fish being caught from here.
PARKING: HALF MOON BAY CAFE
POSTCODE: LA3 2QH
LOCATION: HEYSHAM
LOW/HIGH MARK: LOW WATER
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cOMMON sPECIES
SMOOTH HOUNDS
DOG FISH
THORNBACK RAYS
PLAICE
FLOUNDER
BULL HUSS
WHITING
How To Get Here:
Half Moon Bay is located just outside Heysham Village and is a relatively easy mark to get to via car.
If you head to the Half Moon Bay Cafe, there is a small pay and display car park directly opposite on Smithy Lane, you can park on here for up to 12 hours at a time and the carpark remains open 24/7.
Once you arrive in the car park, the below google map image shows you the direct route out onto the beach.
As you can see from the above photo, access from the car park to the shoreline is relatively straight forward, you can go straight ahead down the ramp onto the sand or there is some steps to the right.
Once on the beach head through the rocky area onto the sand, Half Moon Bay is generally relatively hard and free from quick sand in the main area, however, as always while on the sand, do be alert to your surroundings and ensure you have a firm footing.
The below video was filmed by the Big Fish Fishing team to show how easy the mark is to get to.
When To Fish Half Moon Bay
We recommend fishing Half Moon Bay 2 hours before low water and two hours after. When the tide turns it comes in relatively slowly here and swoops around from the lefthand side. As with any low tide fishing mark, always be aware of what is going on around you and keep an eye on the tide.
If you leave two hours after low tide you can walk back the exact same route as you came without any worry about getting cut off by the tide.
How To Fish Half Moon Bay
The Big Fish Fishing team has fished this venue for years, as mentioned above, during the summer months, starting in early May and through to the end of September, this venue is extremely popular for smooth hound hunters, and they have certainly been in this year in abundance, with the majority of hounds falling to the Bait Butcher Pulley Rigs & Pulley Pennel Rigs.
These rigs loaded with crab or squid are perfect for targeting the bigger species here, smooth hounds, thornback rays, bull huss etc.
If you are looking to get stuck into the large volume of flatfish that come into Half Moon Bay, generally fresh or frozen black lugworm is the choice of bait, along with the locally pumped blow lug that can be gathered from the beach itself.
Some Of Our Fish At Half Moon Bay
Our Verdict
The Big Fish Fishing team has spent many a day/night at Half Moon Bay, and this mark remains one of our favourite sea fishing marks in the entire North West.
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It is an easy venue to find, with a moderate distance yet not to strenuous walk to the sea while remaining safe underfoot and safety from the incoming tide.
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If you have never fished at Half Moon Bay, it is certainly one we would recommend getting out to, especially in the summer months if you fancy the challenge of a scrap with some good sized smooth hounds.
And as always, if you need to top up your sea fishing tackle, we have just about everything you could possibly need!
Stay safe, and tight lines!
The Big Fish Fishing team!