Stillwater · Peat · West / Galway (Connemara)

Lough Fee

Lough Fee venue image
Google Places

Brown trout, sea trout, and salmon lough in Connemara.

Marginal · Atlantic Salmon
Cascade · 10-14
Marginallive now
Marginal — persistence required
River dropping into shape after a lift. A short window. Work the obvious lies and move on.
50% confidence
What moved it
  • LevelHeavy rain recentlyNo gauge reading
  • Water temp15.4°C
  • ClarityVery coloured
Today’s fly
Cascade
Cascade10-14
Regional salmon default — river-specific evidence is thin.
Conditions on the water
Estimate
Level
Heavy rain recently
No gauge reading
Water temp15.4°C
ClarityVery coloured
Weather12°C
WindW 12 km/h
Pressure1026 hPa
Rain · recent38.5 mm
Rain · ahead6.7 mm

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

Water temperature for atlantic salmon
Warm — slow
15°C est.ideal 1014°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.
Why this works
Poor — barometric pressure is working for you, but time of day is the limiting factor today.
Evidence
Survey-backed · regionalModerate confidence

Backed by regional invertebrate surveys; no sampling on this exact reach yet.

Through the year
0–3 scale · July highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Salmon runRun
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
2
Murrough (Great Red Sedge)Hatch
2
3
2
Black MidgeHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Lake OliveHatch
1
2
2
2
2
2
1

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

Ranked for today
Atlantic Salmon fly box
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Bank and boat access
  • Day tickets €30–50
  • Rules vary seasonally.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Fishing better nearby · 5
Gallery · 1
  1. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Brown trout, sea trout, and salmon lough in Connemara. Fishery-managed; boats and bank fishing available. Rules vary by season. For 2026 this remains an open fishery — salmon may be retained in season under the Wild Salmon & Sea Trout Tagging Scheme and bag limits, with catch-and-release at other times.

Under the surface

Lough Fee lies in the high Connemara country just south of Killary Harbour, a narrow lough three kilometres long beneath the Twelve Bens and the Garraun hills. It takes the Tooreenacoona River at its head and spills north-west to Lough Muck and on through the short Culfin River to the Atlantic. This is hard granite-and-quartzite country, the water clear but soft and acidic off the surrounding bog and mountain. Fee holds a good stock of small wild brown trout, with salmon running the system and a run of sea trout that, though thinner than in former times, still comes in off the tide. Part of the Twelve Bens Special Area of Conservation, it is wild, scenic, mountain-walled water. The character is an exposed upland lough — rocky margins, granite shoals and a stony shore — fished from boat or bank to the wave. Wading the shore and streams is steady on firm rock.

Wading: Exposed mountain walled lough

  • Lough
  • Peat
  • Unconfined
  • Stillwater
Water quality (WFD)
  • EcologyUnknown
  • ChemicalUnknown
Why this score · for atlantic salmon
  • Temperature6830% weight
  • Flow4525% weight
  • Clarity1520% weight
  • Feeding Time1015% weight
  • Pressure8510% weight
Directions
Seasons & zones
  • Salmon1 February → 30 September
Related guides
Booking & contacts