Lowland · Mixed · Co. Armagh

River Cusher

Shallow river flowing over stones beneath trees at Clare Glen on the River Cusher, County Armagh

A lowland tributary of the Upper Bann around Tandragee and Markethill in Co.

Poor · Brown Trout
Pheasant Tail Nymph · 14-18
Poorlive now
Not the day for it
River temperature is the limiting factor today, not the flow. This is not the day to push it. Check the thermal advice above before you head out.
80% confidence
What moved it
  • LevelProxyvia River Blackwater (NI)
  • Water temp21.9°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Pheasant Tail Nymph14-18
Upstream
Conditions on the water
Proxy gauge
Level
Steady
Proxy
via River Blackwater (NI)
Water temp21.9°C
ClarityClear
Weather23°C
WindSW 14 km/h
Pressure1020 hPa
Rain · recent0.4 mm
Rain · ahead2.3 mm

No gauge on this water — conditions are inferred from River Blackwater (NI). The trend transfers, the absolute level does not.

Water temperature for Brown Trout
Warm — slow
22°C est.ideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brown Trout
When
Nymphing can work through most of the day.
Where
Cover mixed depths.
Method
Start with tight-line nymphs and adjust if fish rise or drift higher.
Kit
9 ft #4 rod, floating line, 12 ft tapered leader to 4–5 lb fluoro tippet.
Why this works
Water at 21.9°C — above the brown trout 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 7 active hatches hour by hour with Pro.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

See the full sub-surface read 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.

Updated 23 hours ago

Through the year
0–3 scale · August highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
2
Terrestrial BeetlesHatch
2
3
3
2
Blue Winged OliveHatch
1
2
2
2
2
1
Black MidgeHatch
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1

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

Ranked for today
Brown Trout fly box
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Cooler water nearby · 2
Water here around 22°C — probably warm enough to stress Brown Trout . These are likely cooler.
Lough Neagh
32 km
~19°C
Brown trout · Pike · Dollaghan
Hillsborough Lake
25 km
~20°C
Rainbow trout
Gallery · 2
  1. Shallow river flowing over stones beneath trees at Clare Glen on the River Cusher, County Armagh
    The River Cusher at Clare Glen, County Armagh, looking upstream from the bridge
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

A lowland tributary of the Upper Bann around Tandragee and Markethill in Co. Armagh, holding wild brown trout and a run of dollaghan — the migratory Lough Neagh brown trout — from late summer. Drumlin-country water best fished on a settling flood.

Hatches & food

No venue-specific hatch data yet; as a lowland main-stem river, expect the steadier upwing, sedge and midge activity typical of Ulster lowland rivers rather than a documented hatch — general guidance only.

  • Mixed
The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 80%
How the 14 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature7 × 28%2.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time60 × 13%7.8
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity64 × 12%7.7
Limiting factor: Water temperature (21.9°C) is outside Brown Trout's preferred range (10–16°C)= 58
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowproxy via River Blackwater (NI)proxy
Prey activitysurvey-backed invertebrate datasurvey
What would change the calculation
Cooler water — back toward the 10–16 °C ideal band — would lift the score and ease welfare.
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 1 March → 31 October
Related guides
ConnemaraIrish fishingEuro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts