Stillwater · Mixed · Stirling

Lake of Menteith

Lake of Menteith fishing venue photo
Editorial photo

Loch, no Lake Menteith

Damian Rafferty

Scotland's only 'lake' — a sheltered, low-lying water that feels intimate after the vast Highland lochs.

Good · Rainbow
Kate McLaren · 12-14
Goodlive now
Buzzer on Lake of Menteith
Good wave on — drift country. Drift fishing weather — three flies on a long leader.
72% confidence

This venue is often best in spring through autumn.

What moved it
  • WindSE 10 km/hLight breeze
Today’s fly
Kate McLaren
Kate McLaren12-14
Retrieve, in the film
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Wind
Light breeze
SE 10 km/h
N
SE
from the south-east
Wave20 cm ripple
Water temp—
Air temp16°C
CloudOvercast
Pressure—
Rain · recent0.0 mm

Some readings unavailable — check directly before fishing.

Head to
Wind shiftWind shift
Hotel BayKate's BraeDog Island / Malling Shore

The wind has shifted to a SE today, but 2 days of a SW wind has loaded food into Hotel Bay, Kate's Brae and Dog Island / Malling Shore. Fish haven't had time to redistribute — start there before following the new direction.

How to fish it · for rainbow
When
Buzzers from April; daphnia mid-water in summer; sedges and damsels through summer evenings; back-end into October. Menteith fishes the international competition window.
Where
Open water drifts from the boathouse — the Heronry, Mailing Bay, the Hotel Bay. Loch-style drift water through and through.
Method
Loch-style drift on a floating line with a team of three; midge-tip with sedges and dabblers through summer; sweeping line for the back-end. Drogue is essential.
Kit
10 ft #7 boat rod; floating, intermediate and fast-intermediate lines; 6 to 8 lb fluoro. Drogue and a long-handled net.
The plan
Plan A

Set up a broadside drift and cover the water systematically. Work Black Pennell on the bob, Ke-He on the middle dropper, and Marabou Damsel on the point.

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 — drift

A gentle ripple is ideal for drifting — broadside drift covering the wind lanes should be productive.

Through the year
0–3 scale · July highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
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
Rainbow fly box
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Condition match
85%
Cloud50%
Wind100%
Temp100%

Conditions are ideal for Lake of Menteith — wind, cloud and temperature all line up.

Other water nearby · 5
Loch Ardinning
22 km
Brown trout
Allan Water
22 km
Brown trout
Swanswater Fishery
23 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Carbeth Fishery
24 km
Rainbow trout
Carron Valley Reservoir
25 km
Brown trout
Gallery · 7
  1. Loch, no Lake Menteith
    Loch, no Lake Menteith
  2. Early-morning mirror-calm surface of the Lake of Menteith looking westward in still conditions.
    Lake of Menteith at dawn
  3. Open water of the Lake of Menteith with the wooded island of Inchmahome in the middle distance.
    Lake of Menteith and Inchmahome
  4. The open surface of the Lake of Menteith under a stiff wind, choppy water viewed from near Port of Menteith.
    Lake of Menteith
  5. Elevated view of the Lake of Menteith from the Menteith Hills, the open water ringed by rolling uplands.
    Lake of Menteith from the Menteith Hills
  6. Wooden jetty at the Port of Menteith with the Inchmahome ferry on the open lake, tree-lined shoreline behind.
    Jetty at the Port of Menteith
  7. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Scotland's only 'lake' — a sheltered, low-lying water that feels intimate after the vast Highland lochs. Mix of stocked rainbows and wild browns makes fishing engaging throughout the season (March–October). Buzzer fishing in spring and early summer is particularly productive; sedges from June onward create predictable hatches. Depth ranges from 0–10ft in shallow northern bays (Gateside Bay, around islands) to over 60ft south of Inchmahome and in the Otter Bay / Lochend Bay area. Crannogs (ancient lake dwellings just below the surface) are marked on the fishery map — navigation hazards. Boat fishing from Port of Menteith boathouse; no fishing north of buoy line from boathouse.

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

SEPA WFD 2022 (loch layer) — Lake of Menteith: Moderate status. Re-tagged 2026-06-18 from Kelty Water, a river/burn waterbody, to the loch's own SEPA water body. Source: SEPA WFD 2022 classification (spatialdata.gov.scot / SEPA Aquatic Classification Hub).

SEPA (Scotland) · UKSC100271

Why this score
  • Wind conditions (ripple) closely match what this water fishes best in.
  • Temperature (cool) is in the sweet spot for summer fishing.
  • Buzzer is in its seasonal window, boosting the chance of targeted feeding.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout1 April → 31 October
Related guides
Scotland Playbookloch & river fishingSmall Stillwater Playbookstillwater tacticsThermal Layers & Troutreading depth and temperature
Booking & contacts