Swell first, everything else second
A rock platform that fishes beautifully in a flat sea is a genuinely dangerous place in a residual swell, and the swell does not need local wind to be there. Ground swell arrives from weather that has already passed, so a calm, bright morning after a rough night is exactly the combination that catches people out.
Before you commit, work out where the water reaches at the top of the tide and what your retreat looks like when it does. A rising tide closes the walk out long before it closes the fishing. If the answer involves scrambling, or you cannot see the route, the mark is not on today.
Tackle for ground that eats tackle
Expect to lose end gear and rig so that you lose as little as possible. A weak link to the lead, a rotten bottom, lets the lead break away when it snags and brings the fish and the rest of the rig back. A pulley rig lifts the lead clear on the retrieve for the same reason, which is why it is the standard choice over rough ground.
Step up line and leader from what you would use on sand, and check the last few metres for abrasion after every fish. Lures and float gear fished over the kelp will cost you less than a bait pinned into it.
What the rough ground holds
Wrasse over the kelp through summer, pollack and coalfish where current runs past a point, mackerel when they are in, and conger and codling in the deeper gullies after dark. These are marks where a short accurate cast into a gully beats distance every time.
Never fish a rock mark alone, tell someone your plan, and carry a light you can rely on. The individual mark pages below carry the specific hazards, the access route and the current advice on whether a given platform is reachable.
