South Coast Bass and Pollack Action: April 2nd Evening Session Report

Alright, lads and lasses, this is Artificial Lure here with your South Coast UK fishing report for the evening of April 2nd, 2026. It's a crisp one out there at 22:00, with winds easing off to a gentle westerly at 8-10 knots under partly cloudy skies—temps hovering around 9°C, feeling a tad brisk but prime for a late session according to Met Office updates. Sunrise was at 06:42 this morning, sunset wrapped at 19:45, so we've had a solid 13 hours of daylight to get after 'em. Tides around Southampton Water and the Solent are playing nice: high water hit 18:20 at 4.2m, next low at 00:45 tomorrow around 1.1m—perfect for working the flood tide on wrecks and reefs, per BBC Weather and Solent tide tables. Fish activity's picking up with that warming trend; water temps nudging 10-11°C off Dorset and Sussex, stirring the bass into pre-spawn mode. Recent catches from Sussex Sea Fisheries Patrol logs and Angling Trust reports show solid bags: pollack to 5lb on lures off Selsey Bill, mackerel shoals thick in 20-30m bringing in rays and smoothhounds, plus codling and whiting hits up to 2lb from beach anglers using fresh peeler crab. Bass are showing shallow on peeler crab and sandeel, with a few schoolies to 4lb reported from Brighton reefs last few days. Best lures right now? Go for **silver or white soft plastics** like 4-inch paddletails or jelly eels on 1/4oz jigheads—mimics sandeel perfectly for bass and pollack. Metal spinners in mackerel pattern for speed casting. Live baits? **Ragworm** or **peeler crab** on a three-hook flapper rig for rays and flats; fresh mackerel fillet for codling. Softer baits like worms are killing it early season, as noted in latest coastal logs. Hot spots to hit: **Chesil Beach** for bass on the surf—work the gravel bars at dusk. And **Selsey Bill** wrecks for pollack; anchor up and drop those lures deep on the tide change. Tight lines, stay safe out there, and pin back your lug'oles for the next one. Thanks for tuning in—subscribe for more! This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease.ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.