The Best Canals for Fishing in the UK

By Alex Clayton · Updated 23 October 2026

Most “best canal” lists skip the one question that decides whether you can fish there at all: who holds the fishing rights?

The best canals for fishing depend on what you want to catch. For perch, pick the Kennet and Avon, the canal the Canal & River Trust’s own fisheries manager rates for fish stocks. For zander, head to the Midlands: the Coventry, Oxford, Ashby and South Stratford. For big bream, try the Gloucester and Sharpness; for pike, the Stainforth and Keadby in Yorkshire; and for an easy first session, the Shropshire Union or the Llangollen.

Each pick below names who controls the stretch and how to get a permit. Nearly every Canal & River Trust canal is club water or Waterway Wanderers water, and none of it is free.

Canal	Best for	Who controls it	How to get on
Kennet and Avon	Perch	Clubs, by stretch	Check CRT Find a Fishery
Coventry Canal	Zander	Tusses AC, per Angling Times	Confirm with the club
Gloucester and Sharpness	Big bream	Not confirmed	Check CRT Find a Fishery
Stainforth and Keadby at Thorne	Pike, perch	Thorne and District AA, per Angling Times	Confirm with the club
Aire and Calder	Mixed bags	Not confirmed	Check CRT Find a Fishery
Shropshire Union	Beginners	Hodnet AC (bridges 53 to 61) and others	Hodnet AC day ticket, bought in advance
Llangollen at Whixall	Beginners	Waterway Wanderers pick	Check the current stretch list
Basingstoke	Catch and release	Basingstoke Canal Authority	BCA permit online

Before You Pick a Canal: Who Controls the Fishing

You can hold a rod licence and still be fishing illegally on a canal. The licence is not permission to fish any particular water.

The Canal & River Trust owns the fishing rights on its canals and rivers and rents most stretches to angling clubs, who sell day tickets or membership. Its Find a Fishery search shows who controls a stretch.

Stretches no club rents are covered by the Waterway Wanderers permit. From 1 April 2026 it costs £28 for adults, £18 for concessions (concessionary rod licence holders, over-65s and Angling Trust members) and £7 for juniors aged 16 or under. It lasts 12 months and must be bought before you fish.

To get legal on any CRT canal:

Buy an Environment Agency rod licence. In England and Wales a 12-month trout and coarse licence (two rods) is £36.80, a 1-day £7.30 and an 8-day £14.70, per GOV.UK. Juniors aged 13 to 16 get one free and under-13s need none (see our fishing licence guide).
Search CRT Find a Fishery for the stretch.
Buy the club ticket, or a Waterway Wanderers permit if no club holds it.
Read the local rules.

Free Let’s Fish! events aside, there is no free fishing on CRT water. A boat licence does not let you fish, and there is no separate CRT angling licence. Fishing without a rod licence can cost up to £2,500, according to the CRT fishing FAQs.

If you fish canals a few times a year in different areas, start with a Waterway Wanderers permit. If you have one local canal, join the club that runs it. Our canal fishing guides cover individual canals.

Best Canal for Perch: The Kennet and Avon

The reason the CRT rates the Kennet and Avon so highly is mundane. It is drained for engineering works often enough that the Trust knows what lives in it, and John Ellis, the CRT’s national fisheries and angling manager, says it shows the best fish stocks throughout its length.

That makes it the best canal for perch if you want consistency. Angling Times reports perch to 3lb-plus (1.36kg) at Froxfield and the Salmon Cut. Around Hungerford, it says half a dozen fish over 2lb are possible on a big lobworm fished over chopped bait.

Clubs control it stretch by stretch, so check CRT Find a Fishery for your exact length (and see our Kennet and Avon Canal guide).

For bigger individual fish:

Fossdyke at Burton Waters, near Lincoln: perch to over 4lb on drop-shot lobworms near structure, per Angling Times, which lists it as Lincoln and District AA water.
Grand Union Canal at Loughborough: perch over 3lb on worm and caster fished three-quarters of the way across, per Angling Times.

In winter, perch hold tight to moored boats, bridge buttresses and lock approaches (stay outside the 25 m zone around locks). Drop-shotting perch on Windermere, I’ve found that in cold water a worm held almost still beside structure beats a fast retrieve most days. Our drop-shot fishing guide covers the rig.

Best for quality perch on worm or drop-shot. Check with the club before you travel.

Best Canal for Zander: The Coventry Canal and the Midlands Network

The best zander canals are the ones the Canal & River Trust would rather did not have them. Zander were illegally introduced to the canal network around the 1970s, according to the CRT, and now turn up in the Oxford, Ashby, Coventry and Grand Union canals, among others. The CRT says they have not reached Tring-controlled water or the Aylesbury Arm.

The Coventry Canal is the strongest single pick. Angling Times describes more than 14 miles run by Tusses AC (bridges 1 to 34) holding zander, perch, pike and chub. Confirm the club and its tickets directly.

Two more options:

Ashby Canal, Marston Junction to Market Bosworth: a CRT Waterway Wanderers pick, with Tusses AC membership as the alternative. Stretch lists change, so check.
South Stratford Canal, Broomhall Bridge to Old Warwick Road: perch and zander on light lures, per Angling Times, on Lure Anglers Canals Club water.

Fish small softbaits or fish-strip deadbaits at dusk and in coloured water.

On CRT water, zander must not be returned alive. They are non-native, and putting one back breaks the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and the Keeping and Introduction of Fish Regulations 2015. Taking one for the table is an option. The British record stands at 21lb 5oz (9.665kg).

If zander are your target, fish the Coventry Canal, and go knowing the fish does not go back. Check with the club before you travel.

Best Canal for Big Bream: The Gloucester and Sharpness

A canal built for seagoing ships fishes more like a slow river than a narrow cut. Angling Times reports bream to over 7lb (3.2kg) around Saul Junction on the Gloucester and Sharpness.

The approach is a cage feeder fished three-quarters of the way across, with enough bait going in to hold a shoal. The controlling clubs were not confirmed for this page, so use CRT Find a Fishery before you go.

Other bream options:

Chesterfield Canal at Shireoaks: bream and chub beyond 4lb, per Angling Times.
New Junction Canal near Doncaster and the Droitwich Canal, both listed by Angling Times among canals for bream.

From my own feeder fishing for bream, shoals tend to move through a swim rather than sit in it, so a steady stream of bait usually matters more than a big opening bed.

Pick the Gloucester and Sharpness for a big-bream day rather than a varied bag. Check with the fishery before you travel.

Best Canal for Pike: The Stainforth and Keadby at Thorne

For pike that have not seen every lure in the catalogue, go where other anglers do not. Angling Times describes 504 pegs on the Stainforth and Keadby at Thorne, much of it never fished.

It holds pike and perch. Angling Times lists Thorne and District AA as the controlling club, so confirm tickets with them.

The alternative is the River Witham, a CRT Waterway Wanderers pick for pike (that CRT page was last edited in April 2025, so check the current list). It is a river, so the coarse close season of 15 March to 15 June applies. See our fishing seasons guide.

On a wide canal, a lure lets you cover water fast and find the fish. In my experience, a deadbait fished near a feature is a reliable fallback in winter when the lure goes quiet. Use a wire trace, an unhooking mat and long forceps; our guide on how to unhook a pike covers the handling. Gaffs are banned under the national byelaws.

Best for mobile lure anglers prepared to walk. Skip it if you want to settle on one peg all day.

Best Wide Canal for a Mixed Bag: The Aire and Calder

In the 2019 Division One Nationals, sections on the Aire and Calder averaged close to 6lb (2.7kg) a man. That is a big weight for a national match on a canal.

John Ellis of the CRT rates it the best wide canal. Fish the pole or waggler with caster and pinkie, and feed little and often. On a wide, busy navigation, expect boat wash and be ready to lift.

The controlling clubs were not confirmed, so use CRT Find a Fishery for your stretch and check with the club before you travel.

If you want to practise match-style fishing on a canal, start here.

Best Canals for Beginners: The Shropshire Union and the Llangollen

Nothing kills a beginner’s enthusiasm faster than five hours without a bite. Pick a canal where small fish feed close to the towpath.

The Shropshire Union Canal is the obvious choice: the CRT notes that Little Onn is used for youth championships because the fish are catchable close in, and John Ellis calls the Market Drayton area a fair narrow-canal venue. Croughton is a Waterway Wanderers pick (check the current list).

Hodnet AC leases bridges 53 to 61 near Goldstone, with 120-plus pegs, and sells day tickets in advance through its membership secretary. It lists roach, perch, gudgeon, bream to 3lb, chub to 5lb and carp.

Its Market Drayton stretches (bridges 61 to 66) are members only, with no day tickets, because the CRT leased them on special terms after unauthorised fishing and angler-boater conflict. A notice dated 13 July 2026 restricts access to the Adderley stretch, so check the club page.

For a quieter option, a CRT blog by match angler Simon Mottram describes roach and gudgeon on a light waggler and bread from an unfished stretch of the Llangollen at Whixall.

For a first session, take a whip or short pole, a size 18 to 20 hook, bread punch or maggot, and a few balls of groundbait.

Best for first sessions and juniors (under-13s need no rod licence, and 13 to 16s get one free). Skip the Market Drayton stretches unless you are a Hodnet AC member.

The Exception: The Basingstoke Canal

One canal in the south of England ignores most of what you have just read about CRT permits.

The Basingstoke Canal is run by the Basingstoke Canal Authority on behalf of Surrey and Hampshire County Councils, not the CRT. A Waterway Wanderers permit does not cover it. You need a BCA permit, bought online, plus your EA rod licence.

The rules are stricter than on most canals:

Catch and release only.
Towpath side only.
Two rods maximum.
No fishing within 20 m of a lock, bridge or aqueduct.

The canal is an SSSI, so it has a close season from 15 March to 15 June (see our fishing seasons guide). Check current permit prices with the Basingstoke Canal Authority, and read our Basingstoke Canal guide for the stretches.

Worth the trip, but read the BCA rules and check with the authority before you travel.

Canal Rules That Catch Anglers Out

The fastest way to get moved on from a canal is to set up on the lock landing.

These rules apply on Waterway Wanderers stretches. Clubs set their own, which can be stricter, so read your ticket.

Rule	What it means
Locks, swing bridges, water points	Never fish within 25 m
Moorings	No fishing between boats on permanent moorings or at signed visitor moorings. Unsigned visitor moorings are fishable if there is space, but boats have priority
Marinas	Legal to fish opposite an entrance unless signed, but do not cast past the line of the far bank. Fishing inside a marina without permission is trespass or poaching
Power lines	Never fish near overhead lines
Rods	Two maximum
Native fish	Never remove them (Theft Act 1968 and EA byelaws). Zander and other non-natives must not go back
Close season	None on most canals, but canalised rivers and some canals, such as the Basingstoke, close 15 March to 15 June. Clubs can extend it but not shorten it
Magnet fishing	Not allowed on CRT waterways

Breaking the national rod fishing byelaws can bring a fine of up to £50,000.

Most of it comes down to sharing the towpath. When a boat comes through, lift the pole and let it pass.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a Canal and River Trust licence to fish a canal?

No. There is no separate CRT licence. You need an Environment Agency rod licence plus a permit from the club that controls the stretch, or a Waterway Wanderers permit where no club rents it. See our fishing licence guide for current prices.

Is canal fishing free anywhere in the UK?

Not on Canal & River Trust canals and rivers. The only exception is the free Let's Fish! events, so check the CRT website for dates. On every other CRT stretch you need a rod licence and a club or Waterway Wanderers permit, and canals the CRT does not run, such as the Basingstoke, sell their own permits.

Is there a close season on canals?

Most canals have no close season. Canalised rivers and some canals, such as the Basingstoke, close from 15 March to 15 June. Check the byelaws and your club rules, and see our fishing seasons guide.

Can I put a zander back?

Not on CRT waters. Zander are non-native, and returning them alive is an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and the Keeping and Introduction of Fish Regulations 2015. Taking one for the table is an option.

Which canal is best for perch?

The Kennet and Avon is the best canal for perch if you want consistent stocks along its length. For bigger individual fish, Angling Times reports perch over 4lb from the Fossdyke at Burton Waters and over 3lb from the Grand Union at Loughborough.