Fishing on Lough Ennell
Information on permits, fish stocks, recommended flies and Inland Fisheries Ireland rules and regulations.
Fishing Information
Lough Ennell is renowned for its stock of wild brown trout. The trout in Lough Ennell have a uniquely remarkable shape and colour, and are seen to be shaped more like a summer salmon, and coloured more like a sea trout. They are also widely known for their strong fight.
The trout fishing season on Lough Ennell is from March 1st to October 12th, with numerous hatches of fly during that time. The following table has the recommended flies that do well during the season, as recommended by Inland Fisheries Ireland.
| Season | Hatch | Recommended Flies |
|---|---|---|
|
Early(Mar – mid Apr) |
Duckfly |
Orange Bibio, Watsons Fancy, Sooty Olive and March Brown |
|
Early-mid (April) |
Red Tag Peter |
Connemara Black, Blae Sooty Olive, Fiery Brown, Mallard & Claret, Duckfly |
|
Mid(May – June) |
Lake Olives |
Golden Olive, Sooty Olive, Raymond & Cockrobin |
|
– |
Mayfly (Around May 19th) |
Green Peter |
|
– |
Midge (May 20th) |
Sooty Olive, Blae Sooty Olive, Black & Peacock spider |
|
– |
Sedge (Late May, early June) |
Black Pennell |
|
High (Mid Aug – Oct12th) |
Lake Olives(second hatch; mid August – mid Sep) |
Greenwells Spider, Green Olive, Green Peter, Claret Mourrough (small), Raymond, Bibio, Invicta, Black Pennel(wet) |
Recent times have also seen good sized trout being caught by spinning or trolling from a boat.
Lough Ennell is also highly recommended for pike fishing, with large sizes regularly being taken. Pike thrive in large, undisturbed waters, where there is a plentiful supply of food, such as roach, bream, perch etc. During the summer months, the best results are achieved on Lough Ennell by trolling or spinning near the surface of the water around weed banks.
The lake also has some stocks of perch, bream, and roach.
Inland Fisheries Ireland: Rules and Regulations
Regulations can be viewed on this weblink http://www.fishinginireland.info/trout/shannon/ennell.htm
Inland Fisheries Ireland reserve the right to refuse and revoke a permit to anyone violating these regulations, or acting in a manner detrimental to the fishery, fishing or the surrounding countryside.
Anglers who are found to have acted in an ‘unsporting manner’ may have their permit revoked.
