Stillwater · Mixed · Northern Ireland

Bann Valley Fishery

Bann Valley Fishery venue image
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Bann Valley sits in good trout country near the river that gives it its name, and it fishes the way you'd hope a lowland stillwater would — steady and without fuss.

Fair · Trout
Black Buzzer #10-12 · 10–14
A respectable few hours, if you choose your moments
Useful ripple, fishable wave. Worth a session if the wind holds.
47% confidence
limited data
What moved it
  • WindS 34 km/hFresh breeze
Today’s fly
BB
Black Buzzer #10-1210–14
Static or slow on a long leader — the staple stillwater chironomid.
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Wind
Fresh breeze
S 34 km/h
N
S
from the south
Wave60 cm wave
Water temp—
Air temp19°C
CloudBroken
Pressure1006 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm

Some readings unavailable — check directly before fishing.

How to fish it · for trout
When
Overcast days with a ripple, cool to moderate water; evening sedge in summer
Where
Work a bushy searching pattern on the bob and drop a contrasting nymph on the point. Keep a sedge-style dry or emerger on a short leader for the evening rise.
The plan
Plan A

Work a bushy searching pattern on the bob and drop a contrasting nymph on the point. Keep a sedge-style dry or emerger on a short leader for the evening rise.

Plan B

If the main plan is not working, switch to a smaller, more imitative pattern fished slower and deeper. A change of drift angle can also make a difference.

Watch for

Evening tends to be the best period in summer — stay late if you can for a sedge or spinner fall.

Boat — at anchor

Windy conditions suit anchoring in productive areas rather than open-water drifting.

Through the year
0–3 scale · June highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Daphnia SwarmHatch
2
3
3
3
2
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
2
Lake OliveHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
2
Silverhorns & LonghornsHatch
1
2
2
2
1

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

Ranked for today
Trout fly box
BB
Black Buzzer #10-12Top
10–14 · Buzzer
Static or slow on a long leader — the staple stillwater chironomid.
DB
Diawl Bach #12
10–14 · Nymph
On a team, slow retrieve through the top few feet.
C1
Cruncher #12
10–14 · Buzzer
Static or slow on a long leader — the staple stillwater chironomid.
OD
Olive Damsel #10
8–10 · Damsel
Slow figure-of-eight through weed margins in summer.
EH
Elk Hair Sedge #12
12–14 · Sedge
Evening sedge — twitch or dead-drift it as the light goes.
HE
Hares Ear Nymph #12
14–16 · Nymph
Search the runs and pockets, dead-drift near the bottom.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Condition match
60%
Cloud100%
Wind30%
Temp60%

A reasonable day here, though wind isn't quite in the sweet spot.

Other water nearby · 5
Altnahinch Reservoir
19 km
Brown trout
River Maine
25 km
Brown trout · Dollaghan
Dungonnell Reservoir
26 km
Brown trout
Cashel Lake View Trout Fishery
26 km
Trout
Duncrun Fly Fishing Trout Lakes
27 km
Rainbow trout
Gallery · 1
  1. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Bann Valley sits in good trout country near the river that gives it its name, and it fishes the way you'd hope a lowland stillwater would — steady and without fuss. It comes into its own on a soft, cloudy day with a ripple working across the surface, the kind of light that makes fish bold. Start with buzzers when the water is cool and chironomids are the only game in town; as spring warms the margins, the diawl bach and a slim damsel earn their keep. By high summer there's sedge on warm evenings and the odd fish looking up, which is when a dry fly becomes a plan rather than optimism. Bright flat-calm days are the hard ones — wait for the wind, or fish the first and last hours of light.

  • Lake
  • Mixed
Why this score
  • Wind conditions (windy) are not ideal for this water.
  • Cloud cover (cloud) suits the fishery well.
  • Buzzer is in its seasonal window, boosting the chance of targeted feeding.
Related guides
Irish Loughs Playbooklough-style fishingSmall Stillwater Playbookstillwater tacticsThermal Layers & Troutreading depth and temperature
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