Ringstead Bay, Dorset

SPECIES
Good from May to November for bass, wrasse, thornback and small-eyed ray and conger.

BAITS
Target the bass with peeler crab. The plaice take ragworm or small chunks of peeler tipped with a sliver of squid. The thornbacks like peeler or squid, but fish frozen sandeel for the small-eyed ray, with squid a second best bait. Conger take squid or mackerel, and the wrasse crab.

TACKLE & TACTICS
The upper beach is a mix of sand and shingle, but with broken ground and reefs inshore and clean patches in between. Long range finds cleaner ground. It's very popular by day from June on into early September with holidaymakers, but fishes well after dark when the beach is quieter.

It fishes vest during the bigger spring tides, especially at low water, but will give fish throughout the flood tide and for the first two hours of the ebb. It fishes best in a light south to southwest wind at night.

5 to 6oz beachcasters and 18lb line on a tougher reel like a Penn 525 covers most situations. For the plaice fish a wishbone rig with size 2 to 4Aberdeen hooks. The bass, ray and conger require a pulley rig made from 60lb mono with a size 3/0 to 4/0 Viking pattern hook. Lead weights can be 5ozs in most conditions.

The bass and conger tend to work quite close in, but you need to cast a fair way to find the rays and plaice.

LOCATION
Off the A35 at Dorchester take the A352 for Warmwell, then the A353 through Poxwell. At Upton take the left hand turn for Ringstead Bay. Parking available.