Brixham breakwater is one of the most popular fishing venues in Torbay. It stretches a quarter of a mile out into Torbay. There are numerous species of fish that can be taken from this structure. Fish include, Mackerel, Pollock, Wrasse, Mullet, Bass, Flatfish, Garfish, Dogfish and of course, the conger eel.

You can literally fish anywhere on the breakwater, although it's probably a good idea to avoid the beach in the summer months, as holidaymakers don't appreciate being bombarded by lead. Fishing from the outside of the breakwater will probably bring you better results, unless you are fishing for the elusive mullet, fishing on the inside of the breakwater will yield better results.

You do have to be aware that for most of the length of the breakwater, there is a rocky outcrop which stretches for at least 70 yards out from the breakwater. There is no lighting on the breakwater so you will need to take your own source of light with you. Fishing in heavy seas should be approached with great caution.

If you are bottom fishing in this location, be prepared to lose plenty of tackle. Having said that, if you persevere, you can be rewarded with some specimen fish, especially when it comes to conger. Fish in excess of 50lb have been taken from the breakwater in the past. In fact, the British conger record of over 56lb was once held here. Even though the large conger have been rather scarce in recent years, fish of 25lb to 30lb are not uncommon.

If you do fancier a crack at the conger, make sure you use a very sturdy beach caster. Choose a suitable reel, most conger fishermen opt for a sturdy multiplier. You could use a fix reel but you may have a problem finding and that will take heavy lines. There are a few on the market that will take the heavier line, the Shimano Baitrunner 6500A will hold up to 30lb breaking strain so if you really don't like multipliers, you could try this and see how you get on. A medium duty multiplier will be more than capable of handling anything that you will catch off the shore. Load your reel with a minimum of 25lb breaking strain line. You would actually be advised to go up to 35lb as a precaution, as a large conger will put up a huge scrap, if you don't keep them on the move, they are likely to take you under a rock or around the nearest structure it can find. Terminal tackle for conger couldn't be more basic, a running ledger is all you need. If you are fishing somewhere where the tide is strong, you you might need to increase your lead weight. If you are using a very sturdy beach caster, then you might want to opt for around 5 or 6 oz.

Because conger have got teeth, you will have to use a very sturdy trace. Their teeth aren't huge, but they are very sharp and will bite through normal monofilament line as if it is cotton. You could either go for a wire or a nylon trace. Nylon is quite common now as it does not kink up. If you choose to use monofilament, you will probably need to use lines strengths in excess of 100lb to avoid being bitten through.

When it comes to bait, don't be frightened to go big. A mackerel flapper would be an absolutely superb bait to use. To prepare a mackerel flapper, simply run a sharp knife along the fillet, when you can't cut anymore, turn the knife 45°and gently cut through the backbone and then bring the knife towards the tail along the other fillet. Remove the tail and backbone and you will be left with the head and two fillets that flap around in the current, absolutely perfect for large conger. Of course, you don't have to do use this type of bait. Herring, pouting, cuttlefish, squid will all tempt conger. Hook sizes can be varied really. I wouldn't go any less than 6/0 and I don't think it's necessary to go any more than 10/0.

Anywhere along the outside of the breakwater will yield conger. You don't have to cast very far, 30 or 40 yd. is suffice. Once you are all ready to fish, just cast out, put your rod on a rest, put the reel into free spool with the ratchet on and then just wait. When a bite comes, you may not even think it is a conger, sometimes you will get very subtle bites where tiny amounts of line are pulled off the reel, in my experience, it's best to be patient, the eel may just be mouthing the bait, it may not have it in its mouth properly, striking at the first click may cause you to pull the bait away from it. If this does happen, leave the bait where it is, eels will normally find it again. Wait until the line starts peeling off the reel a little more positively and strike into the fish. If the line does start screaming off the reel, pick your rod up and strike firmly.

When you hook into a conger, make sure you have some way of getting it out of the water. You can either use a gaff which consists of a large hook mounted on the end of substantial length of wood. If you don't fancy injuring the conger, or you plan on putting it back, you could use a large landing net. Personally, gaffing is probably the safer bet as stumbling around on rocks in the dark can be quite hazardous.

Finally, it is a highly advisable not to fish alone when congering. Because conger are primarily a nocturnal species, it is obvious that you will be fishing at night. If you do catch a conger from the breakwater, you will definitely need someone to land it for you, it would be highly dangerous to try and do it on your own, so take heed!

Brixham breakwater is also an excellent venue for catching mackerel. You don't need to be an expert, get yourself a set of feathers and you will have many hours of fun. If you fancy going for the bigger mackerel then set yourself up with some sliding float tackle and use a large bait. Fish of up to 3lb + have been taken off the breakwater. These fish aren't common, but they do come into the bay in the summer months on occasions.

Occasionally bass can also be taken from the breakwater. Try using live baits such as prawn or sand eel. Using artificial baits such as plastic sand eels, metal spinners and plugs will also take bass if they are in the vicinity.

Garfish are always present during the summer. Sliding float tackle baited with mackerel strip is probably the most common way of catching these strange looking creatures. The telltale sign of a garfish bite is when your float suddenly looks like it hasn't got enough weight on it, or lies on its side. If this happens, strike straightaway to avoid the fish swallowing your hook.

If you like catching wrasse then you have come to the right place. Reasonably large fish can be taken from the breakwater. Fish are typically around 8oz-2lb, but larger ones have been taken. Both sliding float and leger tackle will take wrasse. Typical baits are ragworm, any shell fish (mussels are excellent) prawns, and probably the best bait of all, crab, whether it be hardback or softback, doesn't really matter, wrasse have very strong teeth and will have no problem dealing with a hardback crab.

The breakwater is also a very good spot for mullet. When you fish for mullet, approach them as if they are actually a freshwater fish, such as a carp. These fish are extremely hard fighting and even a small one will give you quite a tussle. A typical Brixham mullet will range from 1-4lb. Bigger ones are taken quite often. It's not unusual to hear of a 7lb fish being taken here.

If you do fancy a crack at the mullet then prepare for a waiting game. To successfully target mullet, you must approach them as if you are fishing for coarse fish. Ground baiting is absolutely essential when mullet fishing. Mullet normally travel around in shoals and will not hang around for very long. If you put down a large bed of mashed bread with fish oil and pieces added, your success rate will be increased immensely. Hook size should be around a size 10 with lines of around 8lbs. Since you will be fishing hard on the bottom, or near enough, you will need to use some kind of sliding float. You don't necessarily have to go for coarse floats, any small float will suffice. Mullet will except lots of different hook baits. Mackerel flesh is an excellent hook bait although not very good at staying on hook for long. Bread flake is another favourite. One bait that is overlooked a lot is maggots. These can be very successful at times. And remember, don't forget your landing net.

Flatfish can be caught here, although they are not that common. If you do want a crack at the flatfish, use baits like worm or peeler crab. You will also have to be good at casting. A typical cast is going to have to be at a rough guess, 60 to 70 yd. which will then take you on to the sand.

If you are a disabled wheelchair angler and want to fish from the breakwater, you will have to travel to almost the end before you can find a suitable spot to cast. If you have a few strong friends, they may be able to lift you on to the outside wall as there is a part that is not very high from the main breakwater. If you do decide to fish from the outside wall, be aware that there are no railings so falling off could well be fatal so make sure your brakes are on and you don't get too close to the edge. If you don't fancy risking life and limb on the outside wall, there is quite a lot of room on the inside with no rocks in front of you. Plenty of fish can be caught here using float equipment so don't worry. Conger eel can also be taken from the inside when fished reasonably close to the jetty.

I've covered a lot of what can be caught from the breakwater, and I have also described how to catch some of these fish. Like we all know, angling is hit and miss so don't blame me if you don't catch anything.

Thanks for reading and good luck