Poole Harbour, Baiter.

Baiter, looking back towards the car park off Labrador Drive.

Baiter Park is an area of reclaimed land in Poole between the Quay and Poole Park. It was once the site of an isolation hospital* built on a spit of land surrounded by water or salt flats. The remaining portion of the building can be seen in the picture above. The park is alongside Labrador Drive and Catalina Drive and has a large car park off each road and a toilet block between them.
This is a noted spot for flounder fishing, the venue is fishable over high tide from the comfort of a paved path and benches. There is a long section of water that fishes much the same over a large part of that length.... this makes it a popular site for matches so you may find it busy. The hot spot is said to be the area where the culvert allows water flow into the pond within Poole Park.

Baiter, looking towards Poole Park.

The bottom here is silt and mud with some weed patches. Flounders, eels and small bass are the most likely catch so use ragworm baits on smallish hooks. Distance casting is not required, fish can be very close in. Boats fishing just offshore catch black bream in late summer, and smoothound are said to turn up on occasion.

There is a public slipway off the car park which is very popular with the jet-ski users who in turn are not very popular with anglers. There is a dedicated area for them to play in over the water but many prefer to show off around the launch area.

There are no cafés nearby, you will need to go back to the Quay area or rely on a snack van that appears on occasion in the car park.
There is good level wheelchair access but some assistance to get fish back over the rock fringe may be required.

The nearest tackle shops for bait are Sea Fishing Poole at the eastern end of The Quay, then the Poole Sea Angling Centre near Poole Quay or The Wessex Angling Centre on Wimborne Road.

* update 11 Sep .2012.... skulking around the internet, as you do, I came across this site which, although about windmills, gives the history of the area. As usual answers to one question lead to another question....the area that is now Poole Park boating lake was once called Hole's Bay...why is Hole's Bay now in another part of the harbour ?


OTHER LOCAL VENUES Holes Bay Evening Hill


Tide times for Baiter for the next 7 days.

with assistance

Poole Harbour, Redhorn Point.

Waiting for a flounder, Redhorn Point

Redhorn Point, Witch Farm Oilfield across the water.

As you head from Studland towards the Ferry you will drive uphill around a long sweeping bend and then as the road levels, see a long straight; on your left about 200 yards on is a metal gate ( FP5 on a sign on the gate) with large a rock each side of the gateway. Coming from the ferry, if you've started going downhill and turning left.... you've missed it. Parking is available at the roadside but keep clear of the yellow line. A broad path leads down to the point it is an easy walk with a few muddy patches after rain. There are usually a few boats moored near the point which provide a visual marker to head for.

January day, with ice along the shoreline.

Fishing from the side of the point is onto silt and mud and a good pull on the line is needed to move the weight from the bottom, from the point casting out to the right of the green channel marker pole the sea bed is more sand and shingle. There are some weed patches to negotiate when reeling in to avoid snags.
You can fish this venue with light tackle as distance is not needed, ragworm, mussel or slipper limpets will catch the usual Poole harbour species.... flounder, school bass and eels.

There are no facilities nearby, there is a cafe and toilets back at Knoll Beach (NT) at Studland. Nearest bait and tackle shops are at Wareham, Swanage or Poole.

The venue is child friendly, there is a strip of sandy beach or a close cropped grass area for the ankle-biters to play on within sight of where you will be fishing.Like all fishing marks along this part of the harbour please observe the fire safety rules.... no fires or barbecues. Adders are quite common in heathland, leave them alone and they will not bother you; keep out of long vegetation, there are a great many deer here and they carry ticks which lurk on the long growth waiting for another host to brush against it.



OTHER LOCAL VENUES......Studland................Jerry's Point

Tide Times for the next seven days

updated 17th August 2010
Parking warning !

Parking Warning. The signs say 'no overnight parking'.... this means you may get a ticket for parking at any time during the 'night', even if you stay just a short time.
check the signs, I believe it is between 11pm and 06.30 am

Poole Harbour, Bramble Bush Bay & Gravel Point

Sunset over Jerry's Point, from Bramble Bush bay.

If you head towards the ferry from the Studland direction then Bramble Bush Bay and Gravel Point are on your left. If coming over on the ferry park soon after passing the toll booth and mini roundabout. There is parking at the side of the road, just be sure to keep clear of the yellow line. Parking is not permitted overnight, if you are fishing a night session use the car park near the toll booth. Walk along one of the many paths through the heather and gorse and you will come onto a narrow beach, well you will if it is not high tide; at big high tides the water will force you back up onto the bank. Make sure you have a line of escape back through the undergrowth or you may have to wait for the tide to drop or get wet feet. Tides are as other Poole harbour, double tides and hard to get your head around; fish most of the tide during neap tides but the water will go a way out on spring tide low. This venue is quite safe for children.... although adders sometimes can be seen in the heather, leave them alone and they will go away, they are unlikely to be found on the beach.

Houseboats at Bramble Bush Bay, Gravel Point behind.

You can use light tackle here as fish are caught very close in, sometimes within five yards. If you cast as far as the houseboats at high tide that will be far enough. Flounder and school bass are caught here on worm baits and worms can be dug in the bay if you are fit enough, otherwise buy them at The Poole Sea Angling Centre near Poole Quay , The Wessex Angling Centre on Wimborne Road in Poole, or at The Swanage Angling Centre

Please observe the fire safety rules, the gorse and heather are often tinder dry and fires here do great damage to the heathland ecosystem.

If the name Bramble Bush Bay seems familiar, it is the name of the chain ferry that works between here and Sandbanks.

Tide Times for the next seven days

Parking warning ! The signs say 'no overnight parking'.... this means you may get a ticket for parking at any time during the 'night', even if you stay just a short time.
Check the signs, I believe it is between 11pm and 06.30 am.

Poole Harbour, Holes Bay

Evening sun over Holes Bay

Holes Bay forms the inland extent of one of the arms of Poole Harbour; the venue is alongside the dual carriageway from the A35 into the town of Poole, the A350. The area is shown in detail here.zoom out and click on Bird's eye View. You can park on the grass verge at the side of the carriageway opposite the car dealership or the pub but there is some talk of police taking action against those who do, so perhaps it would be best to park in one of the side roads behind the car dealership or The Holes Bay pub. There are no facilities at Holes Bay apart from the pub or Macdonalds off Broadstone Way, a road leading from the roundabout between the venue and the A35.
There is access at various points to the footpath that skirts the bay so that the venue is suitable for wheelchair users if they are accompanied by someone able to cross the rock armour on the bank to retrieve rigs and/or fish. One huge drawback of this place is the constant traffic noise.

The rock armour and footpath.

Fishing is onto a muddy bottom and long casting is not required although a long cast will get you into deeper water of the channel where the boats are moored. The target species here is the flounder and some very big ones are caught each year. Bass are often caught but they are usually small and should be carefully unhooked and returned, eels are also caught. Best bait here is ragworm, lugworm or peeler crab. Crabs can be hyper-active here so reel in to check the bait at frequent intervals and if they are too much of a nuisance use a popped up bait, that is the addition of some floating beads threaded on the trace near the hook. The locals tend to use a two hook rig with short (30cm) hook lengths and with coloured beads in addition to the floating beads. The venue is fishable all through a small neap tide but the water shallows on a spring tide low., as a guide use easytide, if the height of water on the graph is above about 1.3 metres you should be fine.

looking back towards Poole.

The path is used by cyclists, look out for them (some don't bother with lights at night), keep the path clear and look behind when casting. Children are fairly safe here as long as they don't stray onto the road. The nearest tackle shop for bait is the Poole Sea Angling Centre near Poole Quay or The Wessex Angling Centre on Wimborne Road.

Tide Times for the next seven days

with assistance
Warning. The traffic lights at the Poole end of Holes Bay Road are equipped with speed cameras, they are not big and yellow, they pretend to be the type that catches people jumping the lights.... the limit has been reduced to 30 to make sure of revenue.... a while ago 50 was deemed to be safe.

Poole Harbour, Jerry's Point.

Jerry's Point, looking west back towards Studland Village.

Jerry's Point is a promontory into Poole Harbour of the heathland that forms the Studland Peninsula. Access is via the road from Swanage to the Toll Ferry to Sandbanks. Look for a blue bus stop pole on the south side of the road about half a mile from the ferry; it has Jerry's Point listed as the stop name, opposite is a gated vehicle entrance with pedestrian access to the side. There is free parking alongside the road but keep inside the yellow line and do not park overnight or you will get a ticket. There are toilets back at the Ferry landing near the toll booth. There is a path that runs northwards to Jerry's Point which faces Brownsea Island, to the point is about a four hundred yard level walk but there may be muddy patches after rain . A few safety tips here, do not under any circumstances light a fire because of the risks to the heathland, the area has a big population of deer ( you can see there slot marks in the soil or in the sand on the beach ) so look out for ticks if you have brushed through the heather, also it is not uncommon to see adders here (best not to play with them). On the way out to the point you will pass a well defined path through the heather leading down into Bramble Bush Bay, you can fish along this beach out as far as the houseboats and Gravel Point. The water is shallow and bass and flounder are the targets here. Ragworm is the favoured bait but fish strips, sand eels or slipper limpets can account for the bigger fish.

Bramble Bush Bay with houseboats and Gravel Point in the background.

Fishing at the point is much like fishing other marks in the harbour. Shallow areas hold bass and flounder but little else. From the point you can cast into deeper water in the channel towards Brownsea Island, it is possible to wade out along the shingle spit to spin for bass in the deeper water or into the disturbed water that forms as the tide drops and increases the rate at which water flows around the point.
Generally the fishing is not great but this is compensated by the views and the solitude; it is not a busy mark usually although there are sometimes matches held here. A safe place for children to potter about on the narrow beaches or to paddle in shallow water.

Nearest tackle shops are Swanage Angling , Poole Sea Angling Centre or the shop in Wareham,
Purbeck Angling, 28 South St Wareham Dorset BH20 4LU

Tide Times for the next seven days

Parking warning ! The signs say 'no overnight parking'.... this means you may get a ticket for parking at any time during the 'night', even if you stay just a short time.
check the signs, I believe it is between 11pm and 06.30 am

updated 27:01:12  bus stop details updated

Poole Harbour, Shell Bay

Shell Bay, Studland at the Poole Harbour entrance.

Shell Bay is the easternmost end of Studland Beach which stretches from here to Ballard Down. The area is owned by The National Trust, to the west is a nudist beach so don't wander too far that way. This beach is right by the Chain Ferry (so called because it hauls itself along chains which lie on the sea bed) that runs between Sandbanks and Studland and there are facilities near the toll booth and car park.
Fishing here mainly concentrates on bass and flatfish, at low tides you can see evidence of the Training Bank which is a long low bank of rocks that 'train' the tidal flow in and out of the harbour. This is a favoured area for bass.
The stream shown in the photo only appears after rainy periods and drains a lagoon into the sea.
Anglers can often be seen spinning for bass into the main current or bottom fishing ragworm or sandeel baits from the beach.

The harbour, across the road from Shell Bay.

Across the ferry approach road on the harbour side, mudflats are exposed at low tide and you can, if feeling energetic, dig bait here. The structure that is visible near the sun in this photo is an oil field installation. Wells under the harbour and drilled out to sea provide millions of pounds worth of oil a week.

For the lunatic fringe only, sign at Shell Bay.

One of the silliest signs I have ever seen, if you walk a coast path then you are bound, eventually, to reach a town on the coast ! If you really need to get to Minehead, go by car, especially if you are carrying all your fishing gear.

Poole Harbour, Sandbanks Beach.

Sandbanks Beach, low tide.

Sandbanks is a peninsula that forms the eastern arm that encloses Poole Harbour. There is a large pay and display car park adjacent. Holly Bush is on the harbour side, and to the seaward, past the toilet block and other facilities, there is a large flat sandy beach. Fishing during the day is only possible out of the holiday season or at night during the summer. Many different species can be caught from here, long distance casting is not needied. A typical evening session in the dark in March yielded bass, pouting, rockling, whiting and flounder; all caught on ragworm or sandeel fillet baits on size two hooks, cast a maximum of seventy yards out; twenty yard casts were catching fish.

The Groyne near the beach access point at low tide.

At high tide you can cover more ground by fishing from the end of one of the groynes, this one has a flat concrete top. Take care when walking down onto the rocks to retrieve tackle and fish, wet rocks are slippery.

Poole Harbour, The Haven.

The Haven, taken from the Chain Ferry from Studland

The Haven mark is easy to find, just follow the ferry signs from Poole. Parking is available very close to where you fish but it is short stay and expensive. Park on the side of the road in Panorama Road which is the road swinging back around to Poole when you get to the the ferry. The narrow entrance and the large volume of water in the harbour makes for fast tidal flow at this point. Check the tide conditions on Easytide. Where the graph line is flat there is less flow, where it is steep there will be a lot. You fish from a concrete wall, fish close in and you will not be so affected by the tide although there are weed beds and other snags on which to loose tackle. Spinning is good here with some nice bass caught on occasion. Light tackle, small hooks and baits dropped in close will give good sport with wrasse and other small species. Ragworm and mackerel or squid strips work well.There are facilities close by, a takeaway shop and toilets back up by the road junction. There are some concrete groynes around towards Sandbanks Beach that you can fish from, the same comments regarding tide strength apply. To get to these you will have to negotiate a short vertical ladder, a sloping slippery concrete apron and other obstacles. Not a venue for small children.
Float fishing for mackerel can be fun from here.
The harbour entrance is very busy with boat traffic, some boats come very close so watch your line. The constant noise of boat traffic can be annoying, some people will head for quieter venues.

Tackle shops for bait are Sea Fishing Poole at the eastern end of The Quay, the Poole Sea Angling Centre near Poole Quay or The Wessex Angling Centre on Wimborne Road...

Poole Harbour & Studland

Evening, Holes Bay

Poole Harbour is a huge area of water where large flounder are sometimes caught along with bass.

Most fishing here is done with light tackle with ragworm as bait, specific locations are Baiter Park, Evening Hill, Lake Pier & Rockley, Holly Bush and Holes Bay, the harbour entrance marks are The Haven and Shell Bay which is across on Studland Beach, a short ferry ride away. On the harbour side of Studland are the marks of Jerry's Point , Gravel Point and Bramble Bush Bay also Redhorn Point in Brands Bay ( there is interesting historical and geological info with map here)

The beach at Sandbanks is included under Poole marks as it is just a few hundred yards from the Holly Bush.

to be continued
updated 17/08/10

Poole Harbour, Lake Pier & Rockley.

Lake Pier.

Lake Pier is at the northern end of Poole Harbour and is approached from the Hamworthy side of Poole. Follow the brown signs to Rockley Park, look out for Dorset Lake shipyard sign, after the shipyard entrance the road rises and near the top there is a sign to the left for Lake Pier, blink and you will miss it. There is a large car park, pay and display,and toilets at the bottom of the hill. You can fish the pier or the beach to the north of the pier. 
The jetty was originally to provide fuelling for flying boat services, the tank storage was where the car park now is; brackets to hold the fuel pipes can still be seen on the side of the pier although the pipes are long gone.
 It is fairly shallow water and the target species will be flounder and bass. Small species such as blennies and gobies can be caught from the pier, you will lose tackle as the bottom is snaggy, if float fishing, mullet, mackerel and black bream can be caught if you are lucky in the summer. There have been reports of Gilthead Bream being caught in this area.  Sand smelt shoal under the structure, they can be easily caught on small hooks and make a good livebait for bass if free-lined or fished under a float. Recent reports mention turbot being caught here.
Use light tackle, small hooks ( size 2 or 4 ) and ragworm for bait, for float fishing a small sliver of the silver belly of a mackerel or a small sandeel work best.

The nearest tackle shop is  Poole Sea Angling Centre near Poole Quay.

The beach, looking north from the car park

The beach runs north west around Rockley and is shallow firm mud and shingle rising to a low shingle bank; fish can be caught within twenty yards as the flood tide covers the beach. Locals prefer to walk to the headland seen in the distance but fish can be caught within a very short walk from the pier. Be aware that bigger spring tides will force you back to the gorse/shrubs and low sand cliffs, cutting off your retreat and making casting difficult, check the strand line of weed and floating debris left by the last tide.

At low tide it is possible to dig ragworm here, the beach under the water shown in the above photograph is pock marked with shallow depressions where holes have been dug.

A child friendly venue although some areas of the pier have no guard rails.

Tide times for Lake Pier for the next 7 days

pier only

Poole Harbour, Holly Bush.

Holly Bush, not holly, not a bush.

The name Holly Bush is confusing, I hope the person who named it knew more about fish than he did about shrubs, it is not holly and it is not a bush. There is a clump of bushes at the top of the rise in the road and the bushes do have red berries at certain times of the year. The venue is opposite the Sandbanks car park on Shore Road and before you get to the mini roundabout as you head out towards the ferry. Parking is alongside the road or in the large car park across the road. This is a flounder and bass venue similar to Evening Hill and similar techniques apply, be careful not to catch a boat or a mooring rope if you are going for the long cast. A short cast will often produce a fish as the fish come right up to the wall. The area dries out at low tide and is fishable a few hours either side of high water. Bait can be dug at low tide and cockles collected. A child friendly venue where the adjacent road presents more danger than the shallow water, although lunatic cyclists may be a problem (as they are on anything that looks like a pavement)

Tackle shops for bait are Sea Fishing Poole at the eastern end of The Quay, the Poole Sea Angling Centre near Poole Quay or The Wessex Angling Centre on Wimborne Road..

Nearest facilities, café and toilets, are across the road in the car park and at the beach.

Tide times for the next 7 days.

Poole Harbour, Evening Hill

Evening Hill looking south, towards car parking area and sailing club

Evening Hill is in the south east corner of Poole Harbour and can be found by following the B3369 out of Poole, look for the brown signs for Sandbanks and the Studland ferry. Apart from the summer period ( when it is used for boat storage ) you will find a small car parking area adjacent to a sailing club building (edit, now fenced off, park on road) at the bottom of the hill as you drop down Sandbanks Road onto Shore Road. Alternatively park on the roadside on  Crichel Mount Road cross the road and take the steps down, this will take you down to the northernmost part of the venue where the green fir trees meet the path in the photo below.

Evening Hill looking north

This is a child friendly venue, even the small ankle-biters would find it difficult to drown themselves here. You can fish here for several hours each side of high tide, the area dries out on low tides exposing gravel and silty mud where ragworm can be dug. This is a flounder spot but bass, sometimes double figure specimens, can be caught. Use light tackle, small hooks and ragworm as bait, distance casting is not required as the fish are sometimes only yards away. There are no facilities here, nearest are at the Sandbanks car park.

Tackle shops for bait are Sea Fishing Poole at the eastern end of The Quay, the Poole Sea Angling Centre near Poole Quay or The Wessex Angling Centre on Wimborne Road..

Tide times for Poole Harbour entrance for the next 7 days

access on tarmac path

Updated 9th Jan 2024