Depending on the time of year and the species you are after, you can have very different experiences with shore fishing. I mostly fish off the coasts of North Wales, where you have quite a variety of fish. In summer the mackerel shoal in and you can have great fun with light tackle. The shoals can be so thick that you basically cast and catch three or four fish as you reel in and this can last for a couple of hours. Exhausting, but a great workout. At the same time I have used fly-fishing gear to go after mackerel, which makes it much more of a sporting proposition.
On the extreme, there are some long sandy beaches where you cast out several rods at low tide, then wait for the tide to come in in the hope of catching bottom-feeders like rays and flatfish. Excellent eating and quite hard work to get them in, but there is a long period of waiting where you can sit and read or just enjoy the scenery.
The more typical fishing where I grew up is on the many rocky outcrops that dot the coastline. Then I tend to take heavier beach rods and fish with bait for larger species whilst taking light spinning equipment for garfish, pollack, bass and mackerel. That way you can intersperse periods of waiting with periods of activity. It's surprising just how quickly the day disappears on a trip like that.
