Stillwater · Sandstone · South West / Kerry, IE

Lough Currane / Waterville

A fishing boat moored on the calm open water of Lough Currane near Waterville, County Kerry.
Tomorrow · Closed season
Perch Fry
Forecast · Tomorrow
Closed season
Out of season. File this water for the right month.
85% projected
Today's fly
Perch Fry
Perch Fry
Conditions on the water · Tomorrow
Estimate
Level
Heavy rain recently
No gauge reading
Water temp12.8°C
ClarityClear
Weather11°C
WindN 50 km/h
Pressure1010 hPa
Rain · recent26.9 mm
Rain · ahead3.0 mm

No gauge on this water — readings are regional estimates from weather, not a live gauge.

Water temperature for Atlantic Salmon
Ideal
13°C est.ideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Atlantic Salmon
When
Spring run February through May — among the earliest in Ireland's south-west. Grilse June through August. Salmon season closes 30 September. Both runs are spate-driven; the lough buffers flow, but fish move on rising water.
Where
Holding water through the lough; the Cummeragh between lough and sea is the running channel. Below a spate, fish are in the lough and on the river — both fish well.
Method
Spring: classic loch-style with bigger wets and a Murrough on the bob. Grilse: smaller patterns, floating line, and the same drift as the sea trout. Take a salmon as a bonus to the trout drift, not the other way round.
Kit
10 ft #7/8 single-hander; some prefer a 12 ft #8 double-hander for spring water. Floating plus intermediate. 12 lb fluoro tippet.
Likely species
Stoneflies
Chironomids
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · tomorrowPeak at 11 Uhr

12 Uhr(now) — Pond Olive

Stage: On emergersApproach: Emerger or dryActivity: 39%
Also:Daddy Long Legs34%
Peak emergence window6 food groups active

Peak activity at 11 Uhr — Pond Olive (Pond Olive, Peak emergence window)

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 3 guilds as a supporter.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 3 as a supporter.

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Evidence
Survey-backed · regionalHigh confidence

Backed by regional invertebrate surveys; no sampling on this exact reach yet.

Through the year
0–3 scale · October highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Salmon runRun
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Sea trout runRun
1
2
2
2
2
1
Heather FlyHatch
2
2
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
3
2
Claret DunHatch
2
3
2
Murrough (Great Red Sedge)Hatch
2
3
2

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Fly box · Atlantic Salmon
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Waterville area, Co
  • Boats available from local ghillies
  • Butler Arms Hotel is the traditional base
  • State rod licence required.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Cummeragh River
2.0 km
0
Salmon · Sea trout · Brown trout
River Inny (Kerry)
7.0 km
0
Salmon · Sea trout
Capall Lough
4.0 km
Sea trout · Salmon
Lough Namona
8.0 km
Sea trout · Salmon
Iasknamacnateery Lough
8.0 km
Sea trout · Salmon
Gallery · 4
  1. A fishing boat moored on the calm open water of Lough Currane near Waterville, County Kerry.
    Lough Currane
  2. A rocky inlet on Lough Currane, open lough water and shoreline rocks.
    Inlet on Lough Currane
  3. Broad view across the eastern reaches of Lough Currane, County Kerry.
    The eastern reaches of Lough Currane
  4. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Moderate
  • Chemical: Unknown
What this classification means

WFD updated 2026-06-18: ecological status Good → Moderate (EEA WISE 2022, 3rd RBMP) and code normalized IE_SW_21_457 → IESW_21_457 (EPA national format → WISE euSurfaceWaterBodyCode; same water body). Source: EEA WISE SWB_SurfaceWaterBody (discodata.eea.europa.eu). | Prior note: EPA WFD 2019-2024 (lake layer) — Lough Currane: Good ecological status. Re-tagged 2026-06-18 from IESW_21F051000 (a river/stream water body, not the lough) to the lough's own EPA lake water body. Source: EPA Ireland WFD 2019-2024 classification (catchments.ie / EDEN).

EPA (Ireland) · IESW_21_457

Why this score · for Atlantic Salmon
  • Temperature10030% weight
  • Flow6025% weight
  • Clarity1520% weight
  • Feeding Time9015% weight
  • Pressure8510% weight
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Salmon 17 January → 30 September
  • Sea trout 1 May → 12 October

Sea trout: Variable seasonal (2026) — Currane remains a famous sea-trout water but recent stock indicators are severe — IFI STAMP reports ~90% rod-catch reduction; Waterville fish-counter sea-trout detections fell 95.6% (2002–2022). The fishery continues fly-only, catch-and-release, but should be presented as a careful, conditions-led opportunity rather than a guaranteed primary target.

Related guides
Irish Loughs Playbooklough-style fishingThermal Layers & Troutreading depth and temperatureAtlantic Salmonsalmon tactics
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts