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

Well it is pretty rough out there again at the moment, to the point that it is unsafe to fish Chesil Beach. However I hope you have your bait booked and a day of work tomorrow, because looking at the wind forecast it will start to die down this afternoon. Sometime in the early hours of tomorrow morning the wind will switch to the North. This will quickly calm the beach down, making it much safer and with the wind at your back you will be able to cast a decent distance. By tomorrow morning the beach will be screaming Cod and Bass. I am not sure how many of either species will be around now, but you can guarantee there will be some and most likely they will be decent sized ones at that. Big baits, especially live Peeler or Hermit Crab are essential. Lugworm and Squid cocktails are also great baits, but don’t forget Mussels (see my bait tips section) and if you are lucky enough to know a fishmonger then Scallop frills are great baits and cost very little if anything.
I have included a video of what Chesil looks like at the moment. This is an archive video but the conditions are pretty much the same except the water is more coloured.

Sea Conditions:

Chesil Beach: Rough and coloured. Conditions later this morning will make it too dangerous to fish, however it should improve by early evening.

Portland: rough and coloured with waves easily exceeding 3m

Portland Harbour: Wavelets with slightly coloured water.

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

Chesil Beach forecast: No chance of fishing Chesil this morning or even this afternoon, but it will change by early evening and it could be the time to get out there and bog your self some decent fish. I would avoid the steeper parts of the beach. Basically anywhere from Portland to Langton Herring. Abbotsbury and to the West will be better choices as they are not so steep.

Portland: Good luck finding a safe fishing spot on Portland. Just about the only place I would suggest is Chine for a bonus Cod or Bull Huss. It is certainly too dirty for Wrasse.

Portland Harbour: If you are looking for a sheltered spot to fish then look no further than the area along the Rodwell Trail and around Sandsfoot Castle. Flounder will be the main target species, but I did manage a Wrasse fishing on the sand between the reefs.

Weymouth Bay: This will be one of the better marks today with a choice of Preston or the pier.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. Rockling are showing up in decent numbers for those looking for different species. Preston is good for Flounder and Whiting.

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]