East Yorkshire’s coastline is set to become a seaside fishing hotspot early next year when it once again hosts Europe’s biggest beach competition.
Anglers from across the UK and as far afield as Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands will descend on a stretch of coast from Bridlington to Spurn Point for the prestigious three-day contest.
Staged 7–9 March 2025, the 31st edition of the Paul Roggeman European Open Beach Championship is expected to attract more than 1,000 anglers, making it one of the largest events of its kind.
Organised by East Yorkshire Events and East Riding Council, it launches with the curiously named ‘Flattie Bash’ on Friday 7 March, a catch and release session held between Fraisthorpe, Bridlington and Hornsea.
And then over the weekend a fishing extravaganza will see a whole host of species caught by competitors, including cod, bass, plaice, sole, flounder, pollack and whiting, while rays also make an appearance or two.
Free to spectate, the competition was originally known as the European Open Beach Championship but renamed in honour of its founder Paul Roggeman following his death in 2015.
Meanwhile, East Yorkshire also offers year-round fishing opportunities for keen anglers, with cod and whiting making up winter catches, while summer brings pollock, bass, mackerel as well as flatfish and the occasional dogfish.
Top spots include Bridlington, where mostly flat, sandy beaches at North Marine Promenade and at North Beach are well sheltered from northerly winds and fishable at high tides. Bridlington harbour and wall are also popular.
Further south along the coast, Withernsea fishes well after a good North-Easterly wind, while the wide-open Hornsea North Beach – the venue for the European Championship’s ‘Flattie Bash’ – is particularly good during larger tides.
And Spurn Point – known as Yorkshire’s Land’s End – has cod and big whiting in winter, and flatfish in spring and summer, along with the chance of bass in the warmer months. But anyone fishing there needs to be aware that the long sandy spit, which stretches three and a half miles into the Humber Estuary from the Holderness Coast, is cut off at high tide.
Anglers are also warned that fishing from cliffs can be dangerous, while coastal erosion can make some beaches difficult to access.
For more information about the Paul Roggeman European Open Beach Championship as well as tide times, and to book tickets, visit www.eobc.co.uk
For more details about things to do and where to stay in East Yorkshire as a destination, see www.visiteastyorkshire.co.uk