Flounder at Magheramore Beach.

Quick facts

Mark type

Beach

Skill

Intermediate

Catalogue rank

Secondary target

Why fish Flounder at Magheramore Beach

Surf-shared cove. Honest reality: dogfish-dominated beach. Bass potential off the south rock shelf in calm conditions.

Small surf cove (~1/4 mile across) between Wicklow Head/Silver Strand and Brittas Bay, with a rock shelf and deep-water coves on the south (right) side.

Predominantly a surfing beach (Brittas Bay Surf School operates here), honest catch profile from local SAI reports is 'medium-size dogfish in numbers, not much else'.

The south rock shelf has tactical bass potential on lures in the right conditions but the tide rip makes bait fishing difficult.

Short: Surf-shared cove.

Honest reality: dogfish-dominated beach.

Bass potential off the south rock shelf in calm conditions.

Estuaries, sandy beaches, muddy creeks and shallow inshore ground, especially around river mouths and drainage outflows.

Honest dogfish beach, bass only on the south shelf in calm conditions, do not expect a busy session.

Magheramore is more of a surfing beach than a fishing beach, the honest catch profile from local SAI reports is 'loads of medium-size dogfish and not much else'.

Do not oversell it.

The south rock shelf has tactical potential for bass on lures in the right conditions but the tide rip makes bait fishing difficult, in those conditions, lures are the only practical approach.

Better treated as a 'tried it, here is what happens' piece on the site than a feature mark.

Season and tide

On Magheramore Beach the catalogue season for Flounder is October to March. Coast-wide, Flounder runs Year round (Best October to March on Wicklow beaches and estuaries).

Wider mark season notes: Dogfish: year round (the dominant species in honest local reports), Bass: April to November (peak autumn Sep to Nov; off rock shelf on lures, conditions-dependent), Flounder: October to March, Mackerel: June to September (off rock shelf), Pollack: small fish off rocks

Tide guidance for this mark: Standard surf-beach windows. Tide rip on the south rock shelf is significant, fish around it on lures rather than bait in those conditions.

Species tide and time pattern: Two hours either side of high water. The flooding tide pushes flounder onto feeding grounds. Slack water periods produce most bites. Night fishing in autumn and winter is particularly reliable.

Catalogue fishable phases: first-flood, mid-flood, high, first-ebb, mid-ebb. Peak phases: mid-flood, first-ebb.

Tactics on this mark

Fish short with running ledger or two-hook flapper rigs, slowly dragging baits across the bottom on flooding and high water to trigger takes in troughs and around estuary mouths.

Standard ledger from the beach (dogfish dominant); Lures off the south rock shelf (bass, conditions-dependent)

Gear class for this mark: general shore. Facing ESE. Confidence MEDIUM.

• Running ledger with a short 6 to 8 inch hooklink
• Two-hook flapper for covering ground
• Small size 2 to 4 Aberdeen hooks, flounder have small mouths
• Slow retrieve to cover ground after casting
• Standard ledger from the beach (dogfish dominant)
• Lures off the south rock shelf (bass, conditions-dependent)

Baits and lures

Flounder baits and lures: Ragworm; Lugworm; Harbour ragworm; Mussel; Small fish strips.

What this mark typically holds: Lugworm; Ragworm; Crab (incidental).

Lugworm; Ragworm; Crab (incidental)

Access and ground

Access via the Bellvue Farm gateway off the coast road between Wicklow and Arklow, gravel driveway with big black gates. Documented as one of the worst access roads in the area. Small car park overlooking the cove. Surfers use the same access (Brittas Bay Surf School operates here). Lane is privately owned. Two more small beaches further down the same road per OS Discovery Series Map 62, local-knowledge dependent access.

Parking: Small car park at the end of the lane.

Safety: Very exposed; check forecast carefully. Rock shelf currents. Beach is shared with surfers, surf school activity affects daytime access.

Nearest tackle: Wicklow town tackle shops.

Nearest town: Wicklow. Skill level: Intermediate.

Size and identification

Typical shore size around 200 to 400 g from Wicklow beaches and estuaries; specimen class from about Fish over 700 g are notable shore flounder.

Brown or grey-brown upper surface with orange-tipped spines along the lateral line. Eyes on the right side. Can develop reddish blotches, easily confused with plaice but lacks the vivid orange spots. The rough, prickly lateral line is the key identification feature.

Tip: Flounder are suckers for movement. Slowly dragging your bait across the bottom and pausing it triggers far more bites than static fishing. In estuaries, cast uptide and allow the bait to trundle downtide, the disturbance in the sand draws flounder in.

Irish shore context: record class around 2.71 kg.

Same-mark companions

Other ranked targets on the same mark include Dogfish, Bass, Dab. Open those pair pages or the full mark guide when you want a multi-species session.

Live ranked advice for Magheramore Beach updates on Today's plan. Pair this page with the Flounder species guide for coast-wide season bars and conservation detail.

Conservation

No current restrictions but handle with wet hands and return small fish.

Guide conservation label: No Restrictions.

Confirm current bag limits and closures on the Flounder species guide and /learn/rules before retaining fish.

Next steps

Related article: Where to Dig or Buy Lugworm in Wicklow

Live ranked session advice for this mark sits on today's plan. Rules and bag limits: learn / rules.