Storms and wind all over the place

Storm Imogen is currently battering the South coast at the moment and will continue to do so for the rest of the day. I had a look down at Chesil earlier this morning and managed to get a soaking in my efforts to get a picture.

The waves and wind were so fierce that the spray was being driven over the top of the beach and I could hardly stand. Even Preston beach which is normally calm when the wind is blowing from the west was rough.

So we have little chance of fishing today unless you tuck into a sheltered spot. However when the storm drops tomorrow, we will be left with rough and coloured sea’s. This is great news if there are any fish still about. Most of the Cod and even the Whiting have moved on to other areas, but you can guarantee that there will be the odd few still around. These stray fish will be tempted in by all the food disturbed by the rough sea.

If you want something a little less rough then it is well worth heading to Poole for some Flounder fishing. Danny Hardwick, a regular visitor to Poole had a good result on Saturday, despite a slow start and testing conditions.

Crabs were stripping the baits within minutes and they stayed around 4 hours before the first fish was landed. That signaled the start of a good session, however Danny’s bait had almost run out by this time. He still managed a nice haul.

The other option is to do what I have been recently and that is to target the rivers. My favourite past time at the moment is learning to tie flies. I desperately wanted to amke my own Pike fly and catch on it.

After seeing some excellent pattern’s from Jo Stephenson I thought I would try and create something similar. Whilst no way as good as Jo’s efforts I was delighted to catch on my purple creation. Nothing spectacular, but really exciting catching my first Pike on a fly. It just goes to prove no matter how novice or experienced an angler you are, when you catch something new, or on a new technique, the feeling you get is fantastic.

Sea Conditions: Water temperature 10°c

Chesil Beach: Unfishable today (Monday)

Portland: Very rough with coloured water

Portland Harbour: Wavelets with clear water

Weymouth Bay: Large surf running with coloured water

Chesil Beach forecast: The beach will be unfishable today. looking at the forecast, the wind is set to drop off considerably overnight. This will leave a rough but fishable beach for the following few days. This could be your last chance of a decent Cod until the Autumn. Big baits and pulley Pennel or up and over rigs would be the best choice.

The Whiting, Pout and Dogfish will also be around to strip your baits. However you may be able to pick up some sizeable Whiting on two or three hook flapper rigs baited with Squid or strips of Mackerel.

Portland: The West side of Portland will be pretty much unfishable today and probably most of tomorrow, due to the swell. East side will be fishable from the high marks along the cliffs. Cheyne Wears may produce COnger and Bull Huss.

Portland Harbour: With the exception of Sandsfoot Castle most of the harbour will be too windy to fish today. Despite the driving wind the water remains pretty clear. Flounder fishing should be reasonable within most of the harbour from tomorrow.

Weymouth Bay: If there is a big Bass still hanging around, then Preston may well be the place to catch it. I would expect a few small Bass in the surf, but remember all Bass must be returned. The piers are still producing Whiting and Pout. The amount of fresh water running into the harbour will put off the Flounder in that area.

Guiding: With winter well and truly here the guiding for the next couple of months will be concentrated on Flounder, Wrasse and Whiting. However it wont be long before the Plaice return again and the first of the Mullet. It is advisable to book early for a guiding session this year. I am limiting my guides to 100 this year, which is a 30% drop from last year. I want to concentrate more on creating videos. However we can offer guided services in Poole and Plymouth, as well as the North East of England. If you would like to be a Fishing Tails guide then please contact us for more details.