Stillwater · Old Red Sandstone · South West / Cork, IE

Lough Allua

Lough Allua — Lough Allua, Ballingeary - geograph.org.uk - 483752

A long, shallow widening of the upper River Lee near Ballingeary, Co.

Marginal · Pike
Large Baitfish Streamer · 15–25cm
Slow going — pick your moments
Useful ripple, fishable wave. Slow going — pick your moments and do not force it.
44% confidence
limited data

Lough Allua is often best in spring through autumn.

What moved it
  • WindNE 26 km/hModerate breeze · Gusts to 35 km/h
Today's fly
LB
Large Baitfish Streamer15–25cm
The workhorse of autumn pike fly fishing.
Conditions on the water
Estimate
Wind
Moderate breeze · Gusts to 35 km/h
NE 26 km/h
N
NE
from the north-east
Wave40 cm chop
Water temp10.4°C
Air temp8°C
CloudOvercast
Pressure1003 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm

No gauge on this water — readings are regional estimates from weather, not a live gauge.

Stale water· 0.7 mm in 48h

Little recent rain — fresh fish runs unlikely. Focus on resident fish and established lies.

Head to
Wind driftNE wind
North-eastern end

A northeasterly has held for most of a day, running colder than the water (8°C air against 10°C water). The end it blows into is taking that chilled surface water, so try the sheltered north-eastern end instead — off the back of the wind, where the undertow returns food along the bottom. That chill sits in the top of the water, though, and the bed is slower to feel it — on a bottom bait it is the undertow, not the temperature, that puts you at this end. Treat it as a tiebreaker between good swims rather than an override — features and angling pressure usually count for more.

How to fish it · for Pike
When
May–September; mayfly peak late May–June
Where
Work Perch Fry on the bob and Minkie on the point.
The plan
Plan A

Work Perch Fry on the bob and Minkie 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

Keep an eye on changing conditions — wind shifts and cloud breaks can trigger short feeding spells.

Boat — at anchor

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

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 2 guilds as a supporter.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 4 as a supporter.

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Through the year
0–3 scale · November highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Reservoir BuzzerHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
2
Daphnia SwarmHatch
2
3
3
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
Pike fly box

Probably the best pike fly fishing window of the year. Cooling water activates pike metabolism and baitfish shoal up before winter, concentrating the predators. Fish are aggressive feeders moving to windward banks, dropoffs, and points where baitfish are pushed. Large profile baitfish streamers on intermediate lines retrieved at medium pace, with pauses at structure edges. Count-down retrieves to find the active depth. Fish move — cover ground rather than working one spot.

LB
Large Baitfish StreamerTop
15–25cm · Fly
The workhorse of autumn pike fly fishing.
RB
Roach Baitfish
12–20cm · Fly
Roach are the primary prey of pike in most European lowland waters (Netherlands, Ireland, France, England).
Permits & access
Free state water
State rod licence required for trout / salmon as applicable.
  • Permit/ticket required; confirm operator dates.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Condition match
45%
Cloud50%
Wind30%
Temp60%

Conditions are away from Lough Allua's sweet spot — it usually fishes best in ripple wind with cloud skies.

Other water nearby · 5
River Sullane
7.0 km
Brown trout
River Sullane
7.0 km
Brown trout
Gougane Barra
9.0 km
Brown trout
Lough Bofinne
22 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout
Lee Reservoirs (Inniscarra & Carrigadrohid)
26 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout · Pike
Gallery · 2
  1. Lough Allua — Lough Allua, Ballingeary - geograph.org.uk - 483752
    Lough Allua, Ballingeary - geograph.org.uk - 483752
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Cork. IFI surveys (2023) show it is now primarily a pike fishery; brown trout are historical/secondary and the former char population has declined. Soft, acidic water best fished from a boat.

Hatches & food

No venue-specific hatch data yet; as an oligotrophic upland lough in this Cork/Kerry sandstone-freestone system, expect the typical acid-water stillwater character of modest buzzer and sedge activity with freshwater shrimp along sheltered margins — treat this as a general expectation, not an observed hatch.

  • Lough
  • Old red sandstone
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Unknown
  • Chemical: Unknown
Why this score
  • Wind conditions (windy) are not ideal for this water.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 15 February → 30 September
Related guides
Winter Pike on the Flyfeatured in this guideIrish Loughs Playbooklough-style fishingSmall Stillwater Playbookstillwater tactics
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts
Permits & access
At a glance

Lough Allua is a lough in South West / Cork, Ireland. The catchment geology is recorded as old red sandstone, and the water sits at about 60 m above sea level. Species listed for this water: pike and brown trout. The trout season is recorded as running from 15 February to 30 September. Best window recorded for anglers: May–September; mayfly peak late May–June. Core methods listed: wet-fly drift; dry fly; dapping. Access is recorded as a lough where no permit is required. Boat fishing is recorded as available. Nearby waters in our listings include River Sullane at 7.0 km, River Sullane at 7.0 km and Gougane Barra at 9.0 km.