Spate · Mixed · East / Louth, IE

Castletown River

Castletown River venue image

The Castletown rises near Newtownhamilton — where it goes by the Creggan — and runs down to Dundalk, gathering the Kilcurry and Falmore tributaries that hold its wild brown trout.

Poor · Sea Trout
Black & Silver Tube · 1–2 inch
Closed season
Out of season. File this water for the right month.
Closed — confidence not applicable today.
What moved it
  • LevelProxyvia River Glyde
  • Water temp8.4°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
BS
Black & Silver Tube1–2 inch
In deep pools and dark water, silhouette and contrast do the work colour cannot. A fly that reads as black against depth is enough. Fish it broadside, hold the swing, let it hang at the dangle — that is when the best fish take.
Conditions on the water · Tomorrow
Proxy gauge
Level
Steady
Proxy
via River Glyde
Water temp8.4°C
ClarityClear
Weather3°C
WindN 12 km/h
Pressure1018 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.2 mm

No gauge on this water — conditions are inferred from River Glyde. The trend transfers, the absolute level does not.

Water temperature for Sea Trout
Ideal
8°C est.ideal 8–15°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Sea Trout
When
From dusk into the first half of the night.
Where
Deeper pools and slower glides · hold water and current seams.
Method
Fish dark patterns on a sink-tip or lightly sunk line, especially near structure.
Kit
10 ft #6/7 rod, floating line with a sink-tip option, 8–10 lb fluoro tippet for the swing.
Likely species
Stoneflies
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 3 active hatches hour by hour as a supporter.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 4 guilds as a supporter.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

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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 · November highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Salmon runRun
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
March BrownHatch
2
3
2
CapererHatch
2
3
3
2
Heather FlyHatch
2
2
Autumn DunHatch
2
3
2

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

Ranked for today
Sea Trout fly box
BS
Black & Silver TubeTop
1–2 inch · Tube
In deep pools and dark water, silhouette and contrast do the work colour cannot. A fly that reads as black against depth is enough. Fish it broadside, hold the swing, let it hang at the dangle — that is when the best fish take.
Medicine Fly
Medicine Fly
8–12 · Streamer
Slim and mobile — fished sunk through the pool when surface work is not producing. Consistently takes fish that will not come to the surface.
SF
Snake Fly (Black)
2–4 inch · Streamer
A mobile eel-like profile that undulates through deep pools — effective when sea trout are lying deep and not responding to conventional wets.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Ballymascanlan River
4.0 km
Brown trout · Sea trout
River Fane
12 km
Brown trout
River Fane
12 km
Brown trout
River Dee (Louth)
16 km
Brown trout
River Dee (Louth)
16 km
Brown trout
Gallery · 1
  1. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Salmon and sea trout enter the lower river from July to September; fish the water below Tuberona Bridge after a flood. Note that for 2026 the river is closed for salmon and sea trout over 40 cm. Single or double barbless hooks only, no worm, under Bye-law 982 of 2020. Permits from Dundalk & District Brown Trout & Salmon Anglers via onthewater.ie.

Hatches & food

A mixed-geology spate river where the upper Creggan and tributaries throw olives and stoneflies; main fishing is flood-run sea trout taking sedges and the occasional dapped terrestrial through summer nights.

  • Mixed
Why this score · for Sea Trout
  • Temperature10028% weight
  • Flow8022% weight
  • Clarity8518% weight
  • Feeding Time9013% weight
  • Pressure857% weight
  • Insect activity5112% weight
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Salmon 1 March → 30 SeptemberClosed
  • Trout 1 March → 30 September

Sea trout: Variable seasonal (2026)

Related guides
ConnemaraIrish fishingEuro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts
Permits & access
At a glance

Castletown River is a spate river in East / Louth, Ireland. It sits at about 45 m above sea level. Species listed for this water: brown trout and sea trout. The trout season is recorded as running from 1 March to 30 September. The salmon season is recorded as running from 1 March to 30 September. Core methods listed: upstream dry fly; upstream nymph; floating-line wet fly for sea trout (night). Access is recorded as a water managed by an angling association or club. Nearby waters in our listings include Ballymascanlan River at 4.0 km, River Fane at 12 km and River Fane at 12 km.