A Guide to the Upper River Shannon

Table of Contents

 UPPER SHANNON GUIDE

The Shannon Regional Fisheries Board presides over Ireland's largest fishery - the River Shannon, its great lakes and its many tributaries. Throughout its enormous catchment area the full spectrum of fishing is available in abundance: from Salmon, Trout, Pike and Course Fish to the vast expanse of the Atlantic, offering a wide variety of sea fish.

The Board is responsible for the protection, conservation, development, management and promotion of the inland fisheries and sea angling resource within its region. 

The Shannon Catchment & Its Fisheries

Greatest of the rivers of Ireland, the Shannon makes a leisurely journey from remote mountains, through fertile plains and wide expanses of lonely peat bog, to the city of Limerick and on to the Atlantic Ocean. Flowing through lakes large and small, with tributaries wandering far and wide through the midlands and, for good measure, several canals, it offers an endless variety of the finest fishing in Ireland.

The poet T.W. Rolleston wrote of the Shannon flowing in a quiet watered land, a land of roses... and nobody has bettered that description. The river for the most part winds its way slowly through the midlands of Ireland. The Upper Shannon extends from the source of the river, in the lonely Shannon Pot on the Cuilcagh Mountains, to the ancient crossing at Shannonbridge, where it is met by the River Suck, one of the major tributaries.

Fishing for Salmon and Brown Trout are part of a tradition going back for centuries. Salmon are scarce in the Upper Shannon region, but work is in progress to increase their numbers. Brown Trout are plentiful in many of the lakes, fine fighting fish, ready to take the famous Mayfly - or any of the artificial flies and lures that have been devised to outwit them. Magnificent Pike abound, together with big Bream and Tench, Roach by the thousand, and the exciting Roach-Bream hybrids and fine Perch. For specialists, big Eels are plentiful.

The region has been welcoming angling visitors for more than 50 years- so everything that an angler could need is available. Old piers and harbour walls provide easy access to the waters. Where reeds fringe the shorelines, fishing stands are in place. For those who want to take to the water, boats are available for hire in all the popular spots. Accommodation of all kinds is available, delightful family homes and large farmhouses catering for Bed & Breakfast or full board, Hotels large and small, self-catering houses or cottages. Fishing tackle shops provide everything in the way of gear - to say nothing of expert advice on the best places to go.

:: LOUGH ALLEN :: ALLEN TO LOUGH REE :: BOYLE RIVER :: SHEELIN & THE RIVER INNY :: STROKESTOWN AND TULSK :: THE MOHILL CENTRE ::

:: VALLEY OF THE SUCK :: MULLINGAR LAKES AND THE RIVER BROSNA :: LOUGH REE & THE MIDDLE SHANNON ::