Catch report & fishing forecast for Dorset including Chesil Beach, Portland & Weymouth

The rough weather yesterday has stirred the beach up again, which will improve the chance of picking up a late Cod. At the moment the beach is full of dogfish and I do mean full. Anglers fishing all along the beach have reported as many as 50 Dogfish in a session. The rough weather might have pushed them off a bit giving the Cod and Whiting a chance to get to the baits.

Water Temperature: Sub-surface 7.9*, Surface

Sea Conditions:

Chesil Beach: A fairly large constant swell of  2m with coloured water.

Portland: A 2m swell with slightly coloured water.

Portland Harbour: Calm with slightly coloured water.

Weymouth Bay: Calm but the water has a bit of colour especially around the harbour entrance.

Chesil Beach forecast: Pout and Dogfish are making up the most of the catches both during the day and night. With Whiting putting in an appearance after dark. Dabs and Rays are worth targeting. At this time of year the Rays prefer large squid or Peeler Crab baits.

Portland: Pollock on lures at dusk or Bull Huss and Conger are your best hope of fish on Portland today.

Portland Harbour: I had a very good LRF session for Flounders around the Sailing Academy at the weekend. I managed 12 in 3 hours.

Weymouth Bay: The piers are fishing well for Whiting, both during the day and at night. Plenty of Pout are also being caught with the odd Flounder and Pollock. Preston is good for Flounder and Whiting. Preston could be one of the few beach marks that will be sheltered once the winds come in tomorrow.

Poole Harbour: I am not hearing any great reports from Poole, but I am sure it is still worth giving it a try. The colder the weather the further out the crabs will go, so fish close to shore for the best chance of a Flounder.

Guiding & Lessons: I know it is the heart of winter, but now is a good time to think about booking a 1 to 1 lesson or get on one of my fishing workshops. This will give you plenty of time to practice the techniques you learn before the fish turn up again in the spring. Have a look on the guiding link at the top of the page or drop me an email for more details to [email protected]