Spate · Mixed · South / Cork

Bandon

Bandon venue image
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South Cork salmon and sea trout river flowing through productive limestone-influenced reaches.

Fair · Atlantic Salmon
Curry's Red Shrimp · 8-12
Fairlive now
Decent — worth a look
River dropping into shape after a lift. Cover the heads and tails before the river drops away.
75% confidence
What moved it
  • Level0.38 mDropping after lift
  • Water temp17.5°C
  • ClaritySlightly colouredClearing
Today’s fly
Curry's Red Shrimp
Curry's Red Shrimp8-12
From the river-specific salmon pack.
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
0.38 m
Dropping after lift
Water temp17.5°C
ClaritySlightly coloured
Weather12°C
WindNW 21 km/h
Pressure1026 hPa
Rain · recent5.9 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

Live readings only. Trends shown where the gauge supports them.

Water temperature for atlantic salmon
Warm — slow
17.5°Cideal 10–14°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for atlantic salmon
When
Spring fish from February; grilse from late May; main run summer. Cork spate river — fish 12 to 24 hours after rain on the drop.
Where
Beats from Dunmanway through Bandon town. Heads, tails, and named lies through the salmon stretches.
Method
Small doubles 10 to 12 across-and-down on a floating line; small tubes on a sink-tip in spring water. Catch-and-release encouraged across most Irish salmon water.
Kit
10 ft #7 single-hander on the smaller spate rivers; 11 ft switch where the river opens out. Floating line plus light sink-tip. 10 to 12 lb fluoro tippet.
Why this works
Fair conditions based on river hydrology and migration patterns.
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 7 active hatches hour by hour with Pro.

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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 · July highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Salmon runRun
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
2
March BrownHatch
2
3
2
GrannomHatch
2
2
Large StoneflyHatch
2
3
2

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

Ranked for today
Atlantic Salmon fly box
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • West Cork river
  • Mixed club and association access
  • Bandon AA, Dunmanway STAA (fly only, 10 miles, Togher Castle to Manch Bridge), Ballineen & Enniskeane AA (4 miles, day tickets)
  • Best window June–September
  • State rod licence required.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
River Arigideen
12 km
Sea trout · Brown trout
Lower Lee
18 km
Brown trout · Salmon
River Sullane
34 km
Brown trout
River Sullane
34 km
Brown trout
River Owenacurra
43 km
Salmon · Sea trout
Gallery · 1
  1. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

South Cork salmon and sea trout river flowing through productive limestone-influenced reaches. Season 15 February to 30 September (closure below Innishannon Bridge until 17 March). Spring salmon from February; fish the pools systematically with sunk-tip line, taking the broken water where fish gather. Grilse from June. Sea trout from May onwards. Standard spate-river approach — fish as the river clears after rain. For 2026 this remains an open fishery — salmon may be retained in season under the Wild Salmon & Sea Trout Tagging Scheme and bag limits, with catch-and-release at other times.

  • Mixed
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Good
  • Chemical: Unknown
What this classification means

EPA WFD 2019-2024 — Good ecological status; filled 2026-06-18. Source: EPA Ireland WFD 2019-2024 classification (catchments.ie / EDEN).

EPA (Ireland) · IESW_20B020780

The full read · show the working · for atlantic salmon · confidence 75%
How the river scores — hydrology factors
Water heightMedium Ideal0.0
Recent riseNone0.0
Falling after liftNot Applicable0.0
Water temperatureCool To Moderate0.0
Time in seasonOpening Period0.0
ClarityClearing0.0
Hydrology base0.0
Legal gate: Unknown Check Local Rules
Can you trust it?
Water temperaturelive gauge readinggauge
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Salmon15 February → 30 September
Related guides
Atlantic Salmonsalmon tacticsIrish Salmon Rivers Guidefive great salmon fisheriesConnemaraIrish fishing
Booking & contacts