Stillwater · Granite · North West / Donegal, IE

Rosses Lakes Fisheries

Lake in the Rosses - Flickr - Liamfm .

The Rosses — the rough stony country between Dungloe and the Atlantic — holds approximately 130 small wild brown trout loughs spread across a few square kilometres of blanket bog and quartzite moorland.

Closed season · Trout
Daddy Long Legs · 10–12
Closed season
Season reopens 15 February. Try elsewhere.
Closed — confidence not applicable today.

Rosses Lakes Fisheries is often best in spring through autumn.

What moved it
  • WindS 32 km/hFresh breeze
Today's fly
Daddy Long Legs
Daddy Long Legs10–12
Upstream dry
Conditions on the water
Estimate
Wind
Fresh breeze
S 32 km/h
N
S
from the south
Wave60 cm wave
Water temp9.2°C
Air temp7°C
CloudOvercast
Pressure1015 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm

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

Stale water· 1 mm in 48h

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

Head to
Wind driftS wind
Southern end

A southerly has held for 7 hours, running colder than the water (5°C air against 9°C water). The end it blows into is taking that chilled surface water, so try the sheltered southern 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 Trout
When
May–September; late summer daddy-long-legs fishing is the highlight
Where
Work Bibio on the bob and Black Pennell on the point.
The plan
Plan A

Work Bibio on the bob and Black Pennell 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 5 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
2
1
Heather FlyHatch
2
2
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
3
2
Claret DunHatch
2
3
2
Murrough (Great Red Sedge)Hatch
2
3
2

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

Buzzer team todayfor the conditions now
Point
Black buzzer, orange thorax
Not in this water's box
#10
How to fish it
Intermediate line · let the breeze drift the team, then hang it 15–30 s

Fly recommendations

Point fly shown — supporters see the whole team, sizes and why.

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Ranked for today
Trout fly box
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Rosses Anglers' Club — day permits from Dungloe
  • Some loughs have specific access rules (fly-only, boat-only)
  • State rod licence required.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Condition match
45%
Cloud50%
Wind30%
Temp60%

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

Other water nearby · 5
Erne Estuary
53 km
0
Brown trout · Sea trout
Lough Anure
6.0 km
Brown trout
Dunfanaghy Fishery
34 km
Brown trout
Lough Fern
43 km
Brown trout
Assaroe Lake
54 km
Brown trout
Gallery · 2
  1. Lake in the Rosses - Flickr - Liamfm .
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

It is probably the densest concentration of accessible wild trout water in Ireland. The lakes vary from half an acre to twenty — most are unfished except by locals, but the Rosses Anglers' Club manages a significant portion and issues day permits for boats and bank fishing. Fish average around the half-pound mark but wild trout to 2 lb are possible on the better loughs. Sea trout enter the system via the short connecting rivers when water is high. This is not destination fishing in the conventional sense — you need local knowledge or a willingness to explore — but for the angler prepared to read the terrain and fish creatively, it is some of the finest wild-trout country in Ireland.

Hatches & food

No venue-specific hatch data yet; as an oligotrophic upland lough, expect a sparse but present midge, olive and sedge food base typical of Donegal's upland waters — a general expectation for this water type, not an observed hatch.

  • Lake
  • Granite
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 → 12 October
Related guides
Irish Loughs Playbooklough-style fishingThermal Layers & Troutreading depth and temperatureConnemaraIrish fishing
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts
At a glance

Rosses Lakes Fisheries is a lake in North West / Donegal, Ireland. Its recorded elevation is about 10 m above sea level and the catchment geology is granite. The species listed for this water is brown trout. The trout season is recorded as running from 15 February to 12 October. Best window recorded for anglers: May–September; late summer daddy-long-legs fishing is the highlight. Core methods listed: loch-style wet fly drift; dry fly on calm days; bank fishing (smaller loughs). Boat fishing is recorded as available. Nearby waters in our listings include Lough Anure at 6.0 km, Dunfanaghy Fishery at 34 km and Lough Fern at 43 km.