Lough Island Reavy
Reservoir · Fresh water · in Northern Ireland
A public-supply reservoir of about 100 hectares near Kilcoo on the edge of the Mourne Mountains, with fishing stands. DAERA's page lists its species only as various, so no fish are named here.
Safety: cold water shock — can cause serious injury or death (general advice, not specific to this place).
Particular to this water: DAERA's page, read on 23 October 2026, gives the season as 1 March to 31 October and requires a DAERA game rod licence and a DAERA game fishing permit from age 12. Lawful rod-and-line methods including fly, spinning and worm. Four stocked trout a day, minimum 25.4 cm. No boats.
FishingHQ describes what this place is, not whether you may fish it. Access, permits and who to ask.
Fish documented nearby, not here
Nothing below has been documented at Lough Island Reavy itself. Each one has been documented at a named place on the same ground, and the places are listed with it. Treat this as what the water around here holds rather than as a catch list for this mark.
Also documented at neighbouring places
One or two accounts each, on the ground around here. Enough to know the fish is caught in these waters; not enough to say anything about this place.
From the shore
- Northern pike — documented at Clay Lake; River Lagan at Stranmillis; The Upper Bann (+7 more)
- Roach — documented at River Lagan at Stranmillis; The Upper Bann; The Blackwater (+6 more)
- Brown trout — documented at Castlewellan Forest Lake; Lough Brickland; Spelga Reservoir (+12 more)
- Rainbow trout — documented at Lough Money; Castlewellan Forest Lake; Hillsborough Lake (+8 more)
- European perch — documented at Lough Money; Craigavon City Park Lake (South); Clay Lake (+6 more)
- Common bream — documented at The Upper Bann; The Blackwater; Craigavon City Park Lake (South) (+3 more)
- Rudd — documented at Clay Lake; Lower Conlig Reservoir; Quoile Basin
- Atlantic salmon — documented at River Lagan at Shaw's Bridge; Shimna River
- Tench — documented at Tullygiven Lough; Enagh Lough, Caledon
- Common carp — documented at Cypress Pond, Castlewellan
- Gudgeon — documented at River Lagan at Stranmillis
Fly fishing
- Brown trout — documented at The Blackwater; The Upper Bann
How people fish it
Practised here: Fly fishing.
Methods the sources name for this ground. Each one is explained in full on its own page.
- Stillwater fly fishing
Fly fishing without current, where the angler supplies every movement and the problem becomes finding fish rather than presenting to them.
- Spinning
Casting an artificial lure and retrieving it so that it moves like something alive — the most direct form of lure fishing.
The ground and the water
- The ground
- A public-supply reservoir of about 100 hectares near Kilcoo on the edge of the Mourne Mountains, with fishing stands. DAERA's page lists its species only as various, so no fish are named here.
Getting there
What public sources describe, last checked 2026-10-23. Car parks fill, services change and a path existing is not a path anybody may use — none of this is a guarantee of availability and none of it is permission to be anywhere.
- Getting to it
- From Newry, take the B8, then Letalian Road, and turn right onto Lackan Road. DAERA lists no car park on site.
Where this access information comes from
- Lough Island Reavy — Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) (Government fisheries body)Relied on for: DAERA's own page for this water: where it is, the fish, the methods, the season, the licence and permit, the bag limit and the facilities.States this directlyPassage read and verified
Through the year
Open from 1 March to 31 October, DAERA's page says.
Safety
Cold water shock — Can cause serious injury or death
General safety for this kind of ground, not a finding about this place.
Water around these islands stays cold enough all year to trigger cold water shock — involuntary gasping and hyperventilation on sudden immersion, which can cause somebody to inhale water in the first seconds regardless of swimming ability.
What reduces it: Wear a buoyancy aid where immersion is credible. If immersed, float on your back until the initial response passes rather than trying to swim immediately.
Rules and access
Licence
A rod licence is required, and Northern Ireland has two licensing authorities — DAERA and the Loughs Agency — covering different areas. Which one issues yours depends on where you are fishing.
Permission to fish
Separate, and both are needed. A rod licence plus a permit or day ticket for the specific water is the normal requirement here.
Particular to this water: DAERA's page, read on 23 October 2026, gives the season as 1 March to 31 October and requires a DAERA game rod licence and a DAERA game fishing permit from age 12. Lawful rod-and-line methods including fly, spinning and worm. Four stocked trout a day, minimum 25.4 cm. No boats.
Beyond what is stated above, FishingHQ does not know the current access position here. Angling in Northern Ireland generally requires both a rod licence from the relevant fisheries body and a separate permit for the water, and the two are issued by different bodies. Rules, seasons and permit arrangements change. Check with the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, the Loughs Agency where relevant, and the permit issuer before going.
Who holds the answer:
- The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, for rod licensing and fisheries regulation.
- The Loughs Agency, in the Foyle and Carlingford catchments.
- The club, association or owner that issues the permit for the water.
- The Northern Ireland department responsible for agriculture, environment and rural affairs, for inland fisheries administration, rod licences and public angling permits across most of the jurisdiction.
- The cross-border loughs agency, which administers fisheries in the Foyle catchment and the Carlingford area across the frontier, and issues its own licences for those areas.
- The club, association, estate or private owner controlling the water, where the fishery is not publicly administered.
- The authority managing any marine protected area, area of special scientific interest or designated site, Strangford Lough in particular.
- The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), which holds the fishing on this water as part of its Public Angling Estate, sets its rules and sells the permit; a rod licence is needed as well.
Nearby fishing
Other publicly documented places within about 40 km, by distance. Positions are approximate public geography and are never exact marks.
- Cypress Pond, Castlewellan — 2–5 km · Lake
- Castlewellan Forest Lake — 2–5 km · Lake
- Spelga Reservoir — 5–10 km · Reservoir
- Shimna River — 5–10 km · River reach
- Dundrum Bay and Newcastle — 10–25 km · Bay
- Annalong — 10–25 km · Harbour wall
- Lough Brickland — 10–25 km · Lough
- Kilkeel — 10–25 km · Harbour wall
Sources for this place
- Lough Island Reavy — Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) (Government fisheries body)Relied on for: DAERA's own page for this water: where it is, the fish, the methods, the season, the licence and permit, the bag limit and the facilities.States this directlyPassage read and verified
- Angling rod licences explained — nidirect (Northern Ireland Government) (Local authority, harbour or protected-area body)Relied on for: Where Northern Ireland rod licences and DAERA permits are bought.States this directlyPassage read and verified
How FishingHQ labels evidence is explained in the evidence policy. Last reviewed 2026-10-23.
Something wrong or out of date?
If something on this page has changed, email us from your own account using the link that fits, with a link to where you saw the change if you can. Every report is checked by a person before anything is changed, and a report never appears on the site by itself. Please don’t send exact private marks.
Before you go
- Fish documented here
- None at this place itself; any listed are from nearby.
- Getting there
- Described from public sources, last checked 2026-10-23. Getting there.
- Rules particular to this water
- DAERA's page, read on 23 October 2026, gives the season as 1 March to 31 October and requires a DAERA game rod licence and a DAERA game fishing permit from age 12. Lawful rod-and-line methods including fly, spinning and worm. Four stocked trout a day, minimum 25.4 cm. No boats. From the body that sets it: Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) and nidirect (Northern Ireland Government), read 2026-10-23. Applies to: Lough Island Reavy.
Nothing here is watched for change. Sources and who to ask.
- Hazards particular to this place
- None recorded for this place; the hazards of the wider coast or water still apply.
Check before you travel
- Whether you may fish here, and whether a licence or permit is needed — start with the Department of Agriculture.
- Who holds the fishing right on the water you mean to fish.
- Anything recorded here was true when it was read; it is not watched for change.