Steelhead & salmon
11′–13′6″ two-hand rod, 7–8 weight, Skagit head + sink tips · Steelhead and Pacific salmon
Open the checklistRiver Lee
- Type
- Tailwater, Cork, Ireland
- Season
- Feb–Sep
Where the season comes from
Season The lower River Lee is open for 2026 Salmon, 1st February to 30th September. Sea-trout, 1st February to 30th September. Brown Trout, 15th February to 30th September.
Set for this water by name.
River Lee
Inland Fisheries Ireland · checked 2026-11-04. Dates change each season: confirm them there. - Live gauges
- 1 verified
- Listed by
- 2 authoritative lists
- Guides
- None listed
- Shops
- None listed
Today on River Lee
Reading the gauge…
Photo credit
The River Lee at the waterworks weir on Lee Road, Cork, the foot of the fished lower Lee. Photo: Tim Sheerman-Chase, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
More about River Lee
The River Lee is a tailwater river in County Cork, Ireland. Inland Fisheries Ireland lists it as a salmon centre of excellence (South West). Inland Fisheries Ireland's 2026 Wild Salmon and Sea Trout Tagging Scheme lists it as an open salmon fishery with optional harvest surplus. This is the Cork river. Under the 2026 tagging scheme the “Lower Lee” is open and the “Upper Lee” closed. The tailwater classification is ours: the fished lower river lies below the ESB Inniscarra reservoir (IFI: “catchment … including large reservoirs”). Its Irish name, An Laoi, is from logainm.ie.
Water level now at the gauge
Reading the gauges…
Where to fish
About this
Nothing on this page grants or implies access: check the agency map, posted signs and landowner permission before you fish. Most waters here need a rod licence or permit and often a beat booking or club ticket; the listing pages under Regulations say which.
Nothing on this page grants or implies access.
River Lee on the map
About this
Gauges, shops and guides nearby
Map of River Lee: gauges, shops and guides
Map of River Lee with 1 gauge.
Restrooms near River Lee
Restrooms near River Lee
Restrooms within 2 miles of River Lee in a straight line, nearest first, with what anglers found when they went. The map says a restroom is there, not whether it is clean or open today.
Map of 6 restrooms near River Lee
Skip the map; every place is in the list belowMap of 6 restrooms near River Lee, numbered as in the list, with the water’s point marked.
Restroom
0.1 mi away in a straight line- Fee (mapped)
- Wheelchair accessible (mapped)
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
We don't know yet: is it clean? · flush or vault? · open to everyone? — tell other anglers: show the questions
- Is it clean?
- Flush or vault?
- Open to everyone?
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Restroom
0.3 mi away in a straight line- Flush toilet (mapped)
- Free (mapped)
- Wheelchair accessible (mapped)
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
We don't know yet: is it clean? · open to everyone? — tell other anglers: show the questions
- Is it clean?
- Open to everyone?
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Restroom
0.3 mi away in a straight line- Flush toilet (mapped)
- Free (mapped)
- Wheelchair accessible (mapped)
- Changing table (mapped)
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
We don't know yet: is it clean? · open to everyone? — tell other anglers: show the questions
- Is it clean?
- Open to everyone?
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Restroom
0.3 mi away in a straight line- Flush toilet (mapped)
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
We don't know yet: is it clean? · free? · open to everyone? · step-free? — tell other anglers: show the questions
- Is it clean?
- Free?
- Open to everyone?
- Step-free?
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Restroom
0.3 mi away in a straight line- Flush toilet (mapped)
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
We don't know yet: is it clean? · free? · open to everyone? · step-free? — tell other anglers: show the questions
- Is it clean?
- Free?
- Open to everyone?
- Step-free?
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Restroom
0.4 mi away in a straight line- Flush toilet (mapped)
- Public (mapped)
- Free (mapped)
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
We don't know yet: is it clean? · step-free? — tell other anglers: show the questions
- Is it clean?
- Step-free?
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Restroom locations and map details: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License, read Oct 24, 2026. Ratings, answers and photos are members' own; who shared them is never shown, and every photo is reviewed before it appears. Visits older than 18 months no longer count. Distances are straight-line miles, not driving. Nothing here grants access to private land. Community guidelines.
More water near River Lee (6)
- Munster BlackwaterCork · Freestone river · about 28 km · live gauge
- River BandonCork · Freestone river · about 35 km · live gauge
- River IlenCork · Freestone river · about 63 km · live gauge
- River SuirTipperary · Freestone river · about 71 km · live gauge
- Lough LeaneKerry · Lake or reservoir · about 75 km · live gauge
- River LauneKerry · Freestone river · about 86 km · live gauge
Regulations and official lists
About this
Each line is an official list that names this water. Those pages are the authority on seasons, licences, limits and closures for each beat or reach; read them before you go.
- IFI salmon centre of excellence (South West)Salmon fishing in the South West · Inland Fisheries Ireland · checked 2026-10-20
- Open salmon fishery with optional harvest surplus (IFI Wild Salmon and Sea Trout Tagging Scheme, 2026)Salmon Angling Regulations 2026 (Wild Salmon and Sea Trout Tagging Scheme: open, catch-and-release and closed fisheries tables) · Inland Fisheries Ireland · checked 2026-10-20
Guides and shops near River Lee
About this
Listings are unclaimed: confirm licensing, rates, dates and hours directly.
Guides
No guide within 60 km yet.
Shops nearby
No shop nearby yet.
Species
About this
The species the agency lists here; presence varies by reach and season.
Listed by the agency
- Salmon
- Sea trout
- Brown trout
Fish these in the US
About this
Matched on the fish the agencies list for both waters first, then the same water type, an official designation or flagship listing on both, and a similar mapped size where USGS hydrography covers both.
At most two waters per country. A shared fish is a listing, not a promise: presence varies by reach and season.
Like the River Lee? Same fish, US waters.
Steelhead / salmon waterPhoto credit
Anglers on the lower Salmon River near Port Ontario, New York, in October. Photo: Bill Blevins, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Gold Medal WaterPhoto credit
The South Platte River in Waterton Canyon, southwest of Denver. Photo: mark byzewski, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Tailwater trout fisheryPhoto credit
The White River near Flippin, Arkansas. Photo: James Powers (Jpowersok), CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons
Featured sport-fishing waterPhoto credit
The lower Deschutes River canyon above Maupin, Oregon. Photo: USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Blue RibbonPhoto credit
The North Platte River at Glendo, Wyoming (below Glendo Reservoir, not the Grey Reef or Miracle Mile reaches). Photo: Tony Webster, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Blue RibbonPhoto credit
The Provo River from the Provo River Parkway, Utah. Photo: An Errant Knight, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Gear checklist
About this
A steelhead and salmon fly-fishing checklist: a switch or spey rod (or 9′6″ single-hand) in 7–8 weight, Skagit lines and sink tips, swing flies, studded boots and cold-weather layers, with estimated prices and where to buy.
Videos for this water (5)
Watch: reading a trout stream
About this
Seams, shelves and soft water, shown on real rivers.
Public YouTube videos from established channels, chosen by us to support this page. Not sponsored; the creators are not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear.
How I Learned to Read Water (Fly Fishing)Embedded from YouTube · Mad River Outfitters · not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear. Watch on YouTube How To Read The Water with Tom RosenbauerEmbedded from YouTube · The New Fly Fisher · not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear. Watch on YouTube Reading the Water to Successfully Locate TroutEmbedded from YouTube · Orvis Guide to Fly Fishing · not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear. Watch on YouTube
Not sponsored All videos on reading water
Watch: nymphing basics
About this
Indicator rigs, depth and detecting the take.
Public YouTube videos from established channels, chosen by us to support this page. Not sponsored; the creators are not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear.
90° Nymph RigEmbedded from YouTube · Huge Fly Fisherman · not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear. Watch on YouTube Casting with an Indicator & Better Nymphing TechniquesEmbedded from YouTube · The New Fly Fisher · not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear. Watch on YouTube
Not sponsored All videos on nymphing
Fish Tales
About this
Trip stories anglers chose to share publicly and tagged with River Lee.
No stories from here yet.
Sources for this page
Not a statement of access, fish presence or conditions.
All 7 sources and dates
A water page organises discovery. It does not assert public access, legal access, current fish presence, guide availability or fishing conditions.
Live readings come from the named provider when the page is shown, under the licence shown on each card. Designations, species and the flagship note link to the agency or body that publishes them; this page copies only the list wording and the species names. Guide and shop listings come from the Legendary directories. Position: the OpenStreetMap feature “River Lee (North Channel), Sunday's Well A, Cork, County Cork, Munster, Ireland” (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), found with Nominatim; a point on or near the named feature, approximate. Water type is our own classification.
- Salmon fishing in the South WestInland Fisheries Ireland · not verified by us (the site blocks automated checks): check the agency’s site
- Salmon Angling Regulations 2026 (Wild Salmon and Sea Trout Tagging Scheme: open, catch-and-release and closed fisheries tables)Inland Fisheries Ireland · not verified by us (the site blocks automated checks): check the agency’s site
- River LeeInland Fisheries Ireland · not verified by us (the site blocks automated checks): check the agency’s site
- Office of Public Works (OPW) station 19109: Inniscarra TailraceOffice of Public Works (OPW) · checked 2026-10-20
- Office of Public Works (OPW) licence: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)Office of Public Works (OPW) · checked 2026-10-20
- OpenStreetMap via Nominatim (position)© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL 1.0 · checked 2026-10-20
- Overture Maps places (guide map points)Overture Maps Foundation, CDLA-Permissive 2.0 · checked 2026-09-30