Mark × species · Secondary target
Dab at Clogga Strand.
Dab is a regular secondary target at Clogga Strand near Arklow. Best window on this ground: Year round. Car park at the strand; short walk to the beach.
Quick facts
- Mark type
- Beach
- Skill
- Beginner/Intermediate
- Catalogue rank
- Secondary target
Why fish Dab at Clogga Strand
Last Wicklow venue. Two-zone beach, deeper water north for flatfish/hounds; rock platforms south for bass on lures.
The last Wicklow shore venue south of Arklow before the Wexford border.
Shallow sandy beach with low rock platforms at the southern end.
Two-zone beach: deeper water to the LEFT (north), low rock platforms to the RIGHT (south).
The south rock platforms deliver bass to both bait and lures, most anglers commit to one zone and miss the other.
Clean sandy ground close inshore, often mixed with flounder on Wicklow surf and shingle beaches.
Last Wicklow strand, deeper north end for flatfish, south rocks for lure bass when swell allows.
The two halves of this beach fish completely differently and most anglers commit to one side.
Left side (north) = bait and distance for flatfish, hounds, dogs.
Right side (south) = lures off the rock platforms for bass.
Season and tide
At Clogga Strand, Dab is worth targeting in Year round. Coast-wide, Dab runs Year round (peaks February to March and November to December autumn through spring on clean sand).
Wider mark season: Bass: April to November (peak autumn Sep to Nov; lures off south rocks), Flounder: year round, Smoothhound: May to October, Dogfish: year round (especially winter), Mackerel: June to September, Pollack: small fish off rocks, Sea trout: occasional
Tide guidance here: Standard surf-beach tide windows. Lure fishing for bass off the south rocks at dawn/dusk in calm clear conditions.
Two hours either side of high water. Any time of day or night.
Fishable phases: first-flood, mid-flood, high, first-ebb, mid-ebb. Peak: mid-flood, first-ebb.
Tactics on this mark
Fish short with two-hook flappers or simple ledgers, occasionally twitching baits along the sand to draw in inquisitive fish during the flood and around high water.
Bait at distance (north zone); Spinners/plugs/surface poppers/soft plastics/leadhead jigs (south rock platforms for bass); Bottom rigs for flatfish
Gear: general shore. Facing SE.
- Running ledger or two-hook flapper
- Size 2 to 4 hooks, dab have small mouths
- Short hooklinks keep baits on the bottom
- Bait at distance (north zone)
- Spinners/plugs/surface poppers/soft plastics/leadhead jigs (south rock platforms for bass)
- Bottom rigs for flatfish
Baits and lures
Dab baits and lures: Ragworm; Lugworm; Harbour ragworm; Sandeel strip.
What this mark typically holds: Lugworm; Ragworm; Crab (hounds); Lures (bass).
Lugworm; Ragworm; Crab (hounds); Lures (bass)
Access and ground
Car park at the strand; short walk to the beach. Two distinct fishing zones, deeper water to the LEFT (north), rock platforms to the RIGHT (south).
Parking: Free car park at the strand.
Safety: Standard beach safety. The south rocks have kelp and rock cover, hooked bass dive into it.
Nearest tackle: Arklow town tackle shops.
Nearest town: Arklow. Skill level: Beginner/Intermediate.
Size and identification
Typical shore size: 100 to 250 g from East Coast beaches. Specimen class: Fish over 400 g are very good shore dabs.
Small oval flatfish, light sandy-brown upper surface with a distinctive curved lateral line above the pectoral fin (the best identification feature). Rough to the touch on the upper surface. Eyes on the right side. Much smaller than plaice or flounder.
Tip: Dab respond well to a moving bait, occasionally retrieve a foot or two and pause. In match fishing, dab are a reliable points scorer and teams actively target them alongside whiting. On quiet sessions when the bigger species aren't showing, a single ragworm on a size 4 Aberdeen is rarely ignored.
Irish shore context: record class around 0.74 kg.
Same-mark companions
Other ranked targets on the same mark include Bass, Flounder, Smoothhound, Dogfish, Mackerel, Pollack. Open those pair pages or the full mark guide when you want a multi-species session.
Live ranked advice for Clogga Strand updates on the daily plan. Pair this page with the Dab species guide for coast-wide season bars and conservation detail.
Conservation
No current restrictions; keep only what you’ll eat fresh.
Guide conservation label: No Restrictions.
Confirm current bag limits and closures on the Dab species guide and /learn/rules before retaining fish.
Other species at Clogga Strand
Next steps
Live ranked session advice for this mark sits on Today's plan. Rules and bag limits: learn / rules.
NEXT STEP
Open the full mark or species guide.
Pair pages assemble mark and species catalogue facts for this ground. Depth sessions live on today's plan.