Were rapidly hurtling towards September and already Chesil Beach appears to be on fine form for codling. But what really are the perfect conditions to score with this most highly prized of species? Our resident Chesil expert, Ben Stockley, explains….
This year the codling have appeared in numbers a little earlier than usual. Sport usually starts to take off around the end of August, but fair numbers of fish have made a showing for a good four weeks already. As well as the regular late summer mainstay of bream, gurnards and smoothhounds, these codling have have shown from numerous marks at the eastern end of the beach and surprisingly to some, not always when the water has been churned up and the wind is blowing.
What are the best conditions?
It might come as a surprise to some that the best sport is often on those days when the water is clear, the wind is all but non existent and the sun shines brightly. For decades now, angling media has taught us to believe that the best cod fishing is during or just after stormy conditions when the water is well coloured up and the sea still has some anger to it. This can be the case for sure, but there is one major reason why I’ve come to realise for some time now that these are not the perfect cod fishing conditions, at least not at Chesil Beach.
A rough, coloured sea will bring all feeders big and small out to play and as is the case under the cover of darkness, species such as pout, poor cod, whiting and dogfish will all use this security blanket in a bid to avoid those larger predatory fish. The dogfish is obviously removed from the prey species, but along with those other pest fish, will make short work of expensive baits.
And this is the point- codling will feed, but so will everything else and it could take many casts before your bait finds itself in the path of a codling.
Clear water and settled weather is a deterrent to smaller species that stay hidden during daylight hours, so it stands to reason that with them removed from the equation, our target will become easier to acquire.
An offshore wind during the day and a tide that offers plenty of run are the perfect combination and if you find the fish at your given location, it’s possible to catch them on a selection of baits.
Baiting up and rigs
Live baits are certainly best, namely fresh blow lugworm, black lugworm and peeler crab, but frozen squid baits can also have their day.
As with the majority of my Chesil Beach fishing, I like to scale my tackle down so that I don’t miss out on other prime species that might be taking a look at my bait. It’s possible to land even a modest fish on small hooks and a size 1 Varivas Aberdeen has both the gape and the strength in the wire to both accommodate a generous bait and stand the chance of landing the fish.
In all but the most brutal conditions, I’ll opt for a multi hook rig that gives me the option to present different baits on the day, meaning I can soon suss out what the preference is, if any. It also means that there is the potential for double and even triple shots of codling, the former already under my belt for this season.
So don’t wait for the wind to blow and the water to colour up, pick a bright sunny day when the wind is offshore and you’ll stand as good a chance as any of putting some beautiful autumn codling on the shingle!
