Limestone · South East / Kilkenny, IE

Nore

The River Nore flowing near Kilkenny Castle, Kilkenny city.

One of Ireland's finest wild brown trout rivers — limestone-fed with superb mayfly and olive hatches.

Marginal · Atlantic Salmon
Willie Gunn · 8-12
Marginallive now
Marginal — persistence required
Low and clear — careful approach country. Hard going on bright water. Favour cloud and shadow.
85% confidence
What moved it
  • Level0.35 mLast reading 9h ago
  • Water temp18.7°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Willie Gunn
Willie Gunn8-12
Regional salmon default — river-specific evidence is thin.
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
0.35 m
Last reading 9h ago
Water temp18.7°C
ClarityClear
Weather19°C
WindNW 14 km/h
Pressure1022 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead1.1 mm

Live readings only. Trends shown where the gauge supports them.

Water temperature for Atlantic Salmon
Warm — slow
18.7°Cideal 10–14°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Atlantic Salmon
When
Spring run from March; grilse from late May; main run summer through autumn. The Nore is a substantial Leinster river — fish 12 to 24 hours after rain on the drop.
Where
Beats from Kilkenny down through Thomastown to Inistioge. Heads, tails, and named lies through the salmon stretches.
Method
Spring: tube on a sink-tip swung deep through the main pools. Summer and autumn: small doubles on a floater across-and-down. Catch-and-release on most beats.
Kit
12 to 13 ft #8 double-hander on the bigger water; 11 ft switch on smaller beats. Floating line plus fast-sink tip. 10 to 12 lb fluoro tippet.
Why this works
Water at 18.7°C — above the atlantic salmon caution line (18°C). Fish dawn or dusk only. Land it fast, wet hands, no air shots.
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 6am

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 12 active hatches hour by hour with Pro.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 2 guilds with Pro.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 3 with Pro.

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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 · August highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Salmon runRun
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
2
GrannomHatch
2
2
Evening SedgeHatch
2
3
3
3
2
Large Dark OliveHatch
1
2
2
1

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

Ranked for today
Atlantic Salmon fly box

Boyne/Slaney summer grilse: fish lie shallow at the tail and neck of pools, so a single hook fished just sub-surface won't snag and covers a taking fish better than a treble. Keep dressing sparse — a small silver stoat, blue charm or Ally's shrimp style in a light build fits.

Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Limestone river — club and private water
  • Good public access in places
  • State rod licence required
  • Brown trout C&R encouraged.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Water here at 18.7°C. Nothing cooler within range.
Gallery · 6
  1. The River Nore flowing near Kilkenny Castle, Kilkenny city.
    River Nore near Kilkenny Castle
  2. The River Nore drifting through Kilkenny town in early morning fog.
    River Nore, Kilkenny
  3. River Nore flowing through the wooded valley at Inistioge, County Kilkenny.
    River Nore at Inistioge
  4. The River Nore at Thomastown, County Kilkenny.
    The River Nore, Thomastown
  5. River Nore flowing through Kilkenny city centre near the Grey Friary.
    The River Nore, Kilkenny city
  6. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

One of Ireland's finest wild brown trout rivers — limestone-fed with superb mayfly and olive hatches. The water is clear and the rises frequent. March through June sees excellent dry-fly fishing. The Kilkenny beats offer classic chalk-stream-like water with sight-fishing opportunities. May brings the mayfly — one of Ireland's great events. Summer sedge hatches are reliable. A technically demanding river that rewards careful casting and patient observation. For 2026 this is a catch-and-release fishery under the Wild Salmon & Sea Trout Tagging Scheme — all salmon and grilse must be returned.

Hatches & food

EPA kick-sample monitoring on the Nore confirms mayflies, stoneflies, a wide range of caddis, midges and blackflies, and freshwater shrimp and hoglice present across its WFD segments. This establishes a broad food base rather than any hatch timing.

Sea trout here

Daytime and dusk fishing on loughs; summer-autumn runs (June–September)

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

EPA WFD 2019-2024 — Moderate ecological status; filled 2026-06-18. Source: EPA Ireland WFD 2019-2024 classification (catchments.ie / EDEN).

EPA (Ireland) · IESE_15N012090

The full read · show the working · for Atlantic Salmon · confidence 85%
How the river scores — hydrology factors
Water heightMedium Ideal0.0
Recent riseNone0.0
Falling after liftNot Applicable0.0
Water temperatureCool To Moderate0.0
Time in seasonOpening Period0.0
ClarityClearing0.0
Hydrology base0.0
Legal gate: Unknown Check Local Rules
Can you trust it?
Water temperaturelive gauge readinggauge
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Salmon 17 March → 30 SeptemberC&R
  • Trout 17 March → 30 September
Related guides
Atlantic Salmonsalmon tacticsIrish Salmon Rivers Guidefive great salmon fisheriesConnemaraIrish fishing
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts