Spate · Old Red Sandstone · South West / Kerry, IE

Cummeragh River

Wide view of the Cummeragh River valley on the Iveragh Peninsula, County Kerry, Ireland.

The main feeder of Lough Currane near Waterville, running through a chain of small loughs on its way down — part of the Currane and Waterville system, which is open for 2026.

Tomorrow · Closed season
Wickham's Fancy
Forecast · Tomorrow
Closed season
Out of season. File this water for the right month.
40% projected
Today's fly
Wickham's Fancy
Wickham's Fancy
Conditions on the water · Tomorrow
Proxy gauge
Level
Rising
Proxy
via Laune
Water temp9.2°C
ClarityUnfishable
Weather6°C
WindN 13 km/h
Pressure1018 hPa
Rain · recent4.4 mm
Rain · ahead1.9 mm

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

Water temperature for Atlantic Salmon
Cool — slow
9°C est.ideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Atlantic Salmon
When
Morning into early afternoon.
Where
Pool tails, steadier runs, and any water with pace.
Method
Fish a sensible line-and-fly combination for the height and pace of water.
Kit
13 ft #8/9 double-hander in spate, 10 ft #8 single in low water. Floating line plus a fast-sink tip. 12–15 lb fluoro tippet.
Likely species
Stoneflies
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · tomorrowPeak at 11am

12pm(now) — Autumn Needle Fly

Stage: Creeping nymphsApproach: Heavy nymphActivity: 39%
Also:Autumn Olive26%
Peak emergence windowWeather boost5 food groups active

Peak activity at 11am — Autumn Needle Fly (Autumn Needle Fly, Peak emergence window)

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)

Hatch predictions

Supporters see what else is on the menu.

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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
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Sea trout runRun
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
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
Atlantic Salmon fly box

Munster Blackwater and neighbouring SW spring rivers: when the water is cold or running high, a tube fly fished deep on a Skagit head or sinking shooting head with a heavier leader finds fish that a floating line can't reach. Comes down to a 9'-10' single-handed rod and small flies on an 8lb tippet once the river drops into summer trim.

Munroe Killer
Munroe Killer
10–14 doubles · Salmon fly
Traditional Irish salmon fly with long local history. Popular on the Munster rivers; the black/yellow combination has worked reliably for grilse fishing throughout the summer.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Capall Lough
4.0 km
0
Sea trout · Salmon
River Inny (Kerry)
5.0 km
0
Salmon · Sea trout
Lough Currane / Waterville
2.0 km
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
Lough Namona
6.0 km
Sea trout · Salmon
Iasknamacnateery Lough
6.0 km
Sea trout · Salmon
Gallery · 2
  1. Wide view of the Cummeragh River valley on the Iveragh Peninsula, County Kerry, Ireland.
    The valley of the Cummeragh River, County Kerry.
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

It holds salmon, sea trout and brown trout, and the river fishes best when a flood draws fish up out of the lough. Waterville and Currane permits; the Salmon and Sea Trout State Licence is required. Atlantic salmon and sea trout are managed under IFI's Wild Salmon & Sea Trout Tagging Scheme — many rivers are catch-and-release and harvest is allowed only where a confirmed surplus exists, so check the river's current status before fishing.

Hatches & food

An acidic old-red-sandstone spate river running through a chain of small loughs into Currane — sparse, acid-tolerant fly life (stoneflies, sedges, terrestrials); the main interest is the famous early salmon and sea trout, not a feeding hatch.

Sea trout here

The Cummeragh feeds Lough Currane, heart of one of Ireland's premier sea-trout fisheries; white trout are a core part of the system's identity, fished mainly on the lough.

  • Old red sandstone
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Unknown
  • Chemical: Unknown
Why this score · for Atlantic Salmon
  • Temperature10030% weight
  • Flow6025% weight
  • Clarity9520% weight
  • Feeding Time2015% weight
  • Pressure8510% weight
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Salmon 17 January → 30 September
  • Sea trout 17 January → 12 October
  • Trout 15 February → 30 September
Related guides
Atlantic Salmonsalmon tacticsIrish Salmon Rivers Guidefive great salmon fisheriesConnemaraIrish fishing
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts
Permits & access
At a glance

Cummeragh River is a spate river in South West / Kerry, Ireland. The catchment geology is recorded as old red sandstone, and the water sits at about 3 m above sea level. Species listed for this water: salmon, sea trout and brown trout. It is classed as a salmon river. The salmon season is recorded as running from 17 January to 30 September. The sea trout season is recorded as running from 17 January to 12 October. Core methods listed: floating line wet fly across-and-down; loch-style wet fly through the lough chain; dry/wet fly for brown trout. Nearby waters in our listings include Lough Currane / Waterville at 2.0 km, Capall Lough at 4.0 km and River Inny (Kerry) at 5.0 km.