Fishing in Killarney National Park

Killarney National Park holds three interconnected lakes — Lough Leane, Muckross Lake, and Upper Lake — along with the rivers that feed and drain them, all sitting within a landscape of glacial valleys and old oak woodland in County Kerry.

These are the Lakes of Killarney, and they form the core of the fishing here. The rivers threading through the park, including the Owengarriff and the Deenagh, connect the uplands to the lakes and carry their own fishing.

Lough Leane is the largest of the three and the most accessible. It holds wild brown trout and is known for them. Sea trout enter from April onwards, with the better fish arriving between April and June.

The lake also holds Arctic char and the Killarney shad, a species found nowhere else in the world. Muckross Lake — also called the Middle Lake — reaches depths of around 75 metres, making it Ireland's deepest lake, and sits between Lough Leane and Upper Lake.

Upper Lake is the smallest and most remote of the three, set deeper into the valley. The fishing here is for wild fish in a protected landscape, which shapes how you approach it.

This is a National Park managed by the National Parks and Wildlife Service, and that status carries its own expectations around access and conduct. Check current rules with the park before you go.

The Killarney Angling Guide, available through Inland Fisheries Ireland, is worth having before your first session. Local knowledge matters on these waters — the char and shad alone make Killarney unlike anywhere else you'll fish in Ireland.