Is it going to be a Cod fest today?

Conditions for Cod fishing could be almost perfect today. I have been waiting almost two weeks for the conditions to be similar to my last Cod session where I managed to land 32 Codling. These were the conditions yesterday morning.

Conditions today are a lot different as Chesil Beach is now just fishable with extreme care. I have managed to get hold of some fresh Peeler Crab and frozen Black Lugworm. I have very little faith in frozen lugworm, but the reports I have had from other anglers fishing it recently are encouraging. So I am putting most of my faith in them being right. I wont be fishing until lunchtime, but if you want to follow my progress then I will be posting on my Facebook page, if I have called it right and the fish are there. If you are not already following me on Facebook then you can do so by clicking the link on the top right of this post or on this link Facebook page

I would be surprised if we didn’t see some Bass as well.

Sea Conditions:

Water temperature 15.9 °c.

Chesil Beach: Rough with 2m waves with coloured water

Portland: large swell with 2m+ waves and coloured water

Portland Harbour: wavelets with clear water

Weymouth Bay: Calm with slightly coloured water

Chesil Beach forecast: I would only advise you to fish Chesil if you are fishing with someone else, because conditions are rough. It is also going to favour those that are capable of a decent cast as the wind will be right in your face and the surf is running for at least 20m. Use big baits on a Pulley Pennel Rig. I will be using 5/0 hooks. If you can get fresh Lugworm then I would use that, if not then frozen lugworm and Squid baits.

Portland: With large waves crashing onto the rocks, marks like Portland Bill and Chesil Cove will be almost impossible to fish. However on the East side of the Island marks such as Chine and Church Ope Cove will be fishable. As long as Church Ope does not get too much weed into the bay then there is a good chance of a Bass on a large Mackerel bait. Bull Huss and Conger always like a bit of coloured water. Although Chine is a high and difficult mark to fish, it is possible to catch Cod from there.

 Portland Harbour: A potential mark that offers good protection in these winds. Sandsfoot Castle is likely to produce Bass and Flounder. It is one of the few marks that will be suitable for lure fishing today.

Weymouth Bay: Both the Stone and Pleasure pier will offer reasonable shelter and the chance of picking up a variety of species.

Preston has been hosting the Welsh International team trials over the weekend. The anglers were only allowed to use Ragworm and Mackerel. This didn’t stop them catching Smoothound, Bass, Plaice, Flounder, Whiting, Dabs and Small Eyed Rays. So if you are looking for an alternative venue, I think you may have found one.

Guiding: I still have a few slots left between now and November, so if you are interested in lure or bait fishing over the next two most productive months of the year then drop me an email to [email protected]