Chesil Beach
Conditions & tides
Scored by DiveConnect's site-physics model
Marine forecast via Copernicus Marine. Score is a rule-based guide from swell/wind vs. the site's exposure — always dive your own assessment.
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About this site
Chesil Beach is a shore dive at Portland in Dorset, entered from the long shingle beach, with Chesil Cove at its Portland end. The kelp fields and an old pipe outlet are the main features, and the water is shallow.
The hard part is the exit. The stones are steep and stacked high from the wave action, your feet sink into them with every step, and in any chop the waves try to drag you back in, which is very tiring in full kit after a long dive. Big swells can build on windy days.
Visibility is poor and often only 2 to 3 m, and on bad days there is almost none, so a buddy line is wise. Water temperature runs from about 6 C in winter to 14 C in spring.
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Along the old outlet cuttlefish often appear and change colour as they size you up. The kelp holds wrasse, pipefish, small pollack, spider crabs, crabs and plenty of Atlantic prawns.
Marine life here
Confirmed by our research team, reported by independent divers, or observed nearby via iNaturalist — each entry is labelled with its source.
LobsterLobsterReported here · unconfirmed
CuttlefishCuttlefishReported here · unconfirmed
NudibranchNudibranchReported here · unconfirmed
snakelocks anemoneAnemonia viridisReported here · unconfirmed
Ballan WrasseLabrus bergyltaReported here · unconfirmed
Edible CrabCancer pagurusReported here · unconfirmed
Velvet Swimming CrabNecora puberReported here · unconfirmed
Goldsinny WrasseCtenolabrus rupestrisReported here · unconfirmed
White Sea-squirtPhallusia mammillataReported here · unconfirmed
PipefishPipefishReported here · unconfirmed
WrasseWrasseConfirmed present · 2 independent sources
Durable tips from divers — access, hazards, marine life, facilities. For day-of conditions, use the report tool in the conditions card above.
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