shore bass fishing help

[apak692000]

Hi all,

Can anyone please help me? i have been fishing since 5 years of age and used to like catching anything, i do sea and freshwater fishing. But geting older i have turned in to abit of a specimen hunter and this year my sea fishing target to get is a bass. ive been trying to catch a bass from the shore for ages now with no luck.
I hear of local anglers bringing them in so they must be around.
ive tryed lures, two hook flapper rigs baited with rag and tipped of with squid and ive just brought some pennel rigs which ive heard are good.

Any tips on tides, rigs, baits, weather, features or anything else i should know would be very much appreciated.

Thanks again Andy

[pingu]

biggest bit of info
dont blast baits out keep the cast short!!
I:e right in the surf

if got pennel rig try a big bit of mackeral or a whole squid and wait for the rod to go
they are there

dave

[scottish_and_mental]

The harbours are teeming with Bass at the minute - Chichester etc and i'm sure somewhere like East Beach Selsey is worth a punt also ..
Personally i find rag seems to be the preferred bait although a nice peeler bait will probably attract the bigger specimens .
We use live pout on the quay with some great results ..
a pennel rig is no different from any other rig except you have two hooks supporting one bait instead of a single one .
A pulley rig with a decent double squid bait or whole peeler after dark would be my weapon of choice or a dexters wedge in the daytime when the tide is running and the sandeels are out .
Try bigger tides and after dark with good sized baits .. look for gulleys at low water or sandbanks that hold sandeels - the fish patrol the same corridors day after day and like a bit of tide so harbour entrances are good spots as are piers and jetties that hold shoals of smaller bait fish ..
Underneath the lifeboat station at Selsey is a good spot !

[apak692000]

Thanks for your help thats great, i went to chichester harbour to have a look not so long ago but it looked all private. were abouts can you fish in there? I dont know the harbour well but i walked right to the top and there was a pub which i guess is the harbours club house? i guess im in the right place? or is there only a cetain bit you can fish in there.

Thanks again

[scottish_and_mental]

Its 99% free .. theres actually no private sea fishing - only no access areas such as yacht clubs/pontoons and moorings ..( private land NOT private fishing ) ..
some beaches are national trust , some areas designated wildlife sanctuaries or just off limits - like MOD land and therefore you need permission to fish ..
try West Wittering where the tide runs pretty fierce but only fish an hour either side of high or low water as the weed can be a pain .
If your casually spinning then you can fish almost anywhere in any harbour - if anyone argues tell them to do one .. !

[apak692000]

popped down to which i think was the harbour last night then went on to west wittering. is the actual chichester harbour in a place called ichenor?. Just i was asking a few locals and they werent very helpful at all. i went to dell quay aswell it looks very fishy. Thanks again for your advice i will be fishing down there this thursday i will let you know how i do.

Andy

[apak692000]

Thanks Dave,

I will give it a go and will let you know how i do didnt know bass take big baits like that lol.

Andy

[scottish_and_mental]

the actual harbour is erm .. the whole thing lol ..Its not like say Weymouth where the boats all moor up in one place - i get where your coming from though .
The whole of Chichy harbour as well as Langstone and Portsmouth harbour are well worth a go for big mullet and school bass as well as mackerel and bream ..
But as i say - stick to the entrances for the best chance of a bass as thats where the tide runs through quickest ..
Locals are all a bit .. well . i won't comment
Dell quay is deffo worth a go ! type 'dell quay fishing' into google and you'll see loads of reports from all over the forums bud .

[apak692000]

Thanks matey,

I probly was being a plank as i thought the harbour was just one spot didnt relise it ran all the way down lol.
I will hit the entrance on thursday but thanks again for your help mate its much appreciated.

Andy

[Aborre]

Fish at early morning or afternoon. Rainy or sun, dosen't matter.....

Use lobworms and i can guarantee you get something.