Pollack at Magheramore Beach.

Quick facts

Mark type

Beach

Skill

Intermediate

Catalogue rank

Occasional

Why fish Pollack 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.

Rocky kelp ground, harbour walls and pier pilings where current runs past structure, often tight to the wall or reef edges.

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 Pollack is small fish off rocks. Coast-wide, Pollack runs Year round (May to September from piers and rocks).

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: Moving water is essential, slack water kills pollack fishing. Last two hours of flood and first of ebb around pier and rock marks. Dusk and dawn consistently produce the biggest fish from harbour walls.

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

Tactics on this mark

Work soft plastics or metals through the water column around structure with sink-and-draw retrieves, or float-fish sandeel just above kelp on moving water.

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.

• Spinning and jigging with 10 to 20g heads
• Float fishing close to the wall with a live or dead sandeel
• Feathers for multiple fish in a shoal
• Light lure rod, pollack are an outstanding sport fish on balanced gear
• Standard ledger from the beach (dogfish dominant)
• Lures off the south rock shelf (bass, conditions-dependent)

Baits and lures

Pollack baits and lures: Sandeel; Mackerel strip; Soft plastic shads; Metal jigs; Feathers.

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 0.5 to 2 kg on Wicklow rock and pier marks; specimen class from about Pollack over 3 kg are realistic from deep rough ground.

Dark green or brown back, silvery-white flanks. Lower jaw protrudes noticeably beyond the upper jaw, the clearest identification feature. Lateral line curves strongly upward above the pectoral fin. Eyes large and golden.

Tip: Pollack almost always take a moving bait. Work your lure or bait at a medium retrieve and be ready for the take, pollack hit hard and immediately dive for the kelp. Keep pressure on at all times or they'll cut you off. From pier walls, drop a float-rigged sandeel straight down the wall face and let the current work it.

Irish shore context: record class around 9.53 kg.

Same-mark companions

Other ranked targets on the same mark include Dogfish, Bass, Flounder, 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 Pollack species guide for coast-wide season bars and conservation detail.

Conservation

There is a statutory minimum conservation reference size of 30 cm for pollack in the Irish EEZ (SFPA MCRS list). Since 1 June 2026, the 2026 pollack bye-law (Pollack Fishing Conservation Bye-Law No. 1028 of 2026) limits recreational anglers to three pollack per day, then catch and release. Returning larger breeding fish is strongly advised.

Guide conservation label: Bag Limit Applies.

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

Next steps

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