Beack fishing at Bournemouth

[Ju123]

Hi,
I want to try some fishing around the Bournemouth area. Looking at the maps I see there is a huge beach stretching right up to the entrance to Poole harbour. I have some beach casting rods but have never done it before.
Any advice anyone?
Are there fish to be caught in that area and if so how?
Also are there any piers I can fish?
Thanks.

[mithrandir]

You could try going the opposite end from Poole at Hegistbury Head, supposed to be go fishing off the rocks there, but can be a tackle graveyard, I guy I work with fishes there but always uses old spark plugs as weights so it does not get too expensive.

You used to be able to fish from Boscombe Pier, but it was closed for repairs in the sumer, might be open again.

the main beaches are a bit shallow, but some do have sand bars in them that could be good fishing, might be worth a reccy at low tide before you fish to check the features

Good luck and let us know how you get on.

[geejayy]

hi m8,
i've not fished that area much this year, and reports have been patchy lately .
the easiest set up for a beginer to sea angling rig wise, is a running ledger (flowing trace).
1st for the beach, night fishing should be best.
i'd load the reel with 15-20lb line then add a shockleader of 10lb strength to every oz of lead cast 60lb will cover it.
leader should run from the lead when in casting position up through the eyes of the rod , down to the reel and 5-6 turns around the spool.
this is a safety measure to prevent your line breaking during powerful casting .

after this rough weather bass should be in close so don't worry too much if you cant cast too far , 20-40 ft should be plenty to stand a chance,

flowing trace- slide a lead on a lead link over the end of the line ,then a bead, tie on a swivel , then a hook length or snood, (length is up to you , 12 inches - 3ft is normal )
tie hook to end, size 2 - 2/0 should cope with most things , hook size is dependant mainly on size of bait.

this time of year i'd expect , whiteing,pout, bass and maybee a late sole
imho, best baits would be ragworm,squid, sandeel.


venues i know about;-
hengistbury head groyne, really a summer venue to light fish,spin/float fish for summer species, bloody long walk.

double dykes, opposite furthest carpark on hengistbury head,

corner cafe/end of the prom , semms to be fishing well this past year or 2.

warren edge/ the bistro,

fishermans walk? / commodore,

there are other marks between here and poole such as branksome chine but i've not fished em, other than sand banks, harbour entrance(strong tide run) and the holly bush , the latter is a sheltered mark fishing into poole bay from the sandbanks spit, mainly for flounder.

as to the peirs, i can't say , they used to be open to anglers but i don't know now.

gord.

[tonybolton]

Originally Posted by Ju123

Hi,
I want to try some fishing around the Bournemouth area. Looking at the maps I see there is a huge beach stretching right up to the entrance to Poole harbour. I have some beach casting rods but have never done it before.
Any advice anyone?
Are there fish to be caught in that area and if so how?
Also are there any piers I can fish?
Thanks.

I think the bit of beach your referring to is Shell Bay - it leads up to the Chain Ferry, if so, then fishing around the rocks near the chain ferry can produce some good bass, but i've had both good and appaling sessions there it never seems to be one or the other. There does often seem to be people fishing on the Sandbanks side of the Chain Ferry so that may fish well.

[Ju123]

Thanks very much folks. Plenty of food for thought!
I'll let you know how I get on (will be going sometime soon after xmas).