Desperate for Cod!!!

[Rahman318]

Last three visits to Dover failed to deliver any Cod, only whiting. Desperate to land my first cod n quieten the missus about my so called time wasting, read many threads but really......which is the best cod mark in south/south east?

[Bluesbro]

Really does depend on the conditions, you were in one of the good spots for Cod already lol. What is a MUST for cod in the southeast is a STRONG southwesterly wind!! Without that you stand little chance of getting any cod. If the wind is blowing from the east then it`s pretty much game over before you have left your house. If you have got a S/W wind then you next need to get yourself some cod rigs made up and some bait, 1 worm a cast really won`t work lol. Look here if you need more info Cod Fishing Newbie

Once you can tick them boxes you can then worry about venues. In the South East there are several spots that are known for chucking out Cod frequently. They are Dungeness, Dover Admiralty pier, Dover Beakwater, Deal Pier, Hythe. Other places will catch cod (there are to many to list) but these are the main haunts.

If your going to fish any of these spots I would expect to be fishing in crowds as these marks get packed over the weekend! It may be better to try and fish mid-week although some spots can still be pretty tight. If you want to fish the piers at Dover then I would suggest fishing smaller tides (6.5mtr and under) and fish the 1 hour before high water, over high water and then 3 hours down (this is peak time). If you fish at dungeness then you will have a best chance of Cod fishing a mark called the Dustbin over low water, to get to the dustbin you will have to park near the first lighthouse and then line the two lighthouses up and walk in that direction (keep the old lighthouse hidden from view behind the new one) that will put you onto the the beach at a deep gulley that is famous for Cod. Beware tho it gets packed with anglers, can be snaggy and the tide will run hard through the mark, best fishing to be had at the dustbin on larger tides. If you go to Hythe then I would suggest fishermans beach (look up a road called West parade on google maps) the beach runs parallel to the beach and you can fish anywhere along that beach with comfort, Hythe fishes best Down tide over larger tides (6.5mtr +). Deal im unsure of when it fishes best but I do know that the lower decking at the front of the pier is as snaggy as anything so take plenty of gear if you choose to go there.

Baits are Black lugworm at Hythe & Dungeness beaches with Yellow Tail lug at Dover and Deal piers. Also take Squid/Cuttle fish, Peeler Crab (if you can get any) and Razor fish to use at all venues either on its own or in combo with the lug.

Hope this helps, others may be able to help you with different marks but I think these are the Best in Kent for Cod.

Tight Lines

Joe

If you want to improve your chances further then fish at night.

[Rahman318]

Brilliant info Joe, looking to do a night session as I've read that's better than day and will also avoid the weekend as I've got next three weeks off work!!! Bait is no problem and I've got pennel rigs made up.

It looks like I'll be trying Dungeness or failing that back to Admiralty Pier, also thought about Brighton Marina, anyone shed any light on that venue fishing Cod?

Thanks once again Joe.

[Gizzo]

Don't bother with Brighton Marina for cod, so few come out. Stick to Kent you will have better luck there.

[Rahman318]

Cheers Gizzo, kind of gathered that and went to Dungeness last week, good size whiting but still no cod!!! Going to give the same place another bash on Tuesday hoping for some luck with a sw breeze!

[Edward Teach]

So did you manage to land a cod?

There were some big fish caught this cod season, but as usuall it seemed to be the usuall suspects who were catching them!

Cod fishing is relativly easy.

The difficult bit is making sure you can get down the beach at a moments notice when conditions are right.

Its hard work making sure that there is allways 20 score of fresh lug in the fridge, plus a good supply of frozen lug, cuttle and squid.

Then you have to map out a job that allows you to drop everything and just go!

Wives, girlfriends and children are also the kiss of death!

Get the preperation right and the cod will be there for you.

Next season looks promising, if the stocks dont get hammered by the netters?

Well thats basicially it now for the 2011/2012 cod season. We may get a spring run of codling but id not put money on it.

Hope you survive the hell that is the summer season. Roll on the 2012/2013 Cod season.

[Rahman318]

Simple answer, no. Not a sniff. Every time I went, Dover/Dungeness all I managed were whiting mostly, dogfish, a rockling, pout. Tried big squid/ lug combos but no luck. Absolutely gutted, now I have to wait another year!!! I even tried Dungeness today for a codling and totally blanked!

Getting grief from missus now for 'wasting' a day; I can't get over not catching a single cod, when is the bass season? Need to catch other than whiting n mackerel!