Fishing forecast for Chesil Beach, Portland, Weymouth and the Purbecks. 3rd November 2012

It is rough and dirty on Chesil and it screams Cod, but you better make the most of it as looking at the wind forecast for tomorrow, it will be unfishable then. If you are looking at doing an all night session tonight then forget it, as your shelters will be blown away just after midnight as almost 40mph winds gusting to almost 50 come through. The beach fished really well yesterday with plenty of Cod, Whiting, Dogfish, Pout and the odd Conger landed. Abbotsbury and Cogden were the most productive marks for the Cod. The tides are back down to medium sized tides which is always a better set than big spring tides.

Water Temperature: 12.9*c             Weymouth High Tide: 8.52pm, 1.88m

Wind: SW 21mph

Sea Conditions:

Chesil Beach: Rough, dirty and dangerous with waves of 2m sometimes exceeding 3m. There is a lot of weed especially down in Chesil Cove.

Portland: Large swell of almost 2m and rough on the West side. Some shelter can be found on the East. The water is coloured.

Portland Harbour: Wavelets and clear water except at Ferrybridge where the water coming out the fleet is dirty.

Weymouth Bay: Clam with a little bit of colour in the water.

Chesil Beach forecast: It will be all about getting a big bait out as far as you can today. That wont be far because of the wind and the size of the baits that you will need, but the fish will be in close. I did read on a forum a catch report from someone that was casting out lug and squid parcels into the wind. He managed a couple of nice Cod up to almost 8lb, but he claimed he was casting 80yds. It is amazing what some people think is 80yds. I actually seen him casting and he was lucky to make 40yds. It goes to prove the fish are in close and don’t believe in everything you read on forums. Keep your rigs simple and single. Forget 2 or 3 hook rigs, you want to have one single big bait, preferably Lugworm and Squid or Peeler or Hermit crab on a 4/0 Pennel rig, clipped down behind the bait. You will be better of using a slightly larger 6 or 7oz weight to help pull the big bait out and keep it from being dragged around in the rough water.

Portland: Pretty much a no go for most of the rock marks. Chine could produce Conger and Bull Huss. Church Ope Cove is full of weed making it almost impossible to fish.

Portland Harbour: It is looking good for Bass, Mullet and Flounder around the harbour. Hamm beach is producing some very nice flounder to Ragworm. Sandsfoot Castle will be another area that will provide shelter with the possibility of a Bass and a nice Flounder.

Weymouth Bay: Preston Beach would be my venue of choice if I can’t get on to Chesil today. There is always the chance of a Cod from Preston, but it is more likely that you would get Whiting and Rays. The piers are both fishing well for smaller species and there have been a few Squid caught in the evenings.

Purbecks: Ringtead  Bay and Windspit often produce some very good fish during a strong South Westerly. Undulate, Spotted Ray, Bass and large Bull Huss all fall to Peeler Crab and Mackerel baits.

Guiding: I have one day available this week on Wednesday, before I go off filming for two weeks. My next available date after that for this month is from the 27^th of November. I am taking bookings for both Bass and bait guiding sessions for December. If last year was anything to go by then the Bass fishing should still be good up until early January. These can be tailored to your requirements including mixed days of bait and lure fishing. Drop me an email for more details [email protected]