Lough Mask — 15 years of fishing report data, distilled
Every IFI report mentioning Lough Mask from 2011–2025 — catch data, conditions, hatches, methods, and areas. Patterns that would take a lifetime on the water to learn.
Key findings
The headline patterns that emerge from 15 years of data.
Early season hatches 5 days earlier
Mayfly are appearing earlier each season, suggesting warmer springs are bringing forward the start of productive fishing.
SE wind produces the best fishing
100% of SE wind reports are positive (7 reports) vs 48% on a NW wind.
May delivers the highest catch rates
Average 3.6 fish per rod — the most productive month in the dataset, backed by 36 reports across 15 seasons.
6-8°C is the sweet spot
81% positive reports at 6-8°C air temperature (26 reports). Fishing drops to 48% positive at 12-14°C.
Best reported catch: 8.5 fish per boat
34 fish from 4 boats on June 13, 2013
What the data tells us about conditions
Historical weather cross-referenced with report sentiment across 15 seasons. Based on actual Open-Meteo records, not just what correspondents described.
Hatch timeline
When key hatches are mentioned in reports. Peak months shown in teal. Based on first and last mentions each season across the dataset.
Top flies by period
Patterns named most frequently in positive reports. Ranked by mention count across 15 seasons.
Month-by-month fishing calendar
What to expect each month. Quality rating and catch data reflect 15 seasons of IFI reports. FlyArea
*Catch rates derived from reports where specific numbers were mentioned — not all reports include them. A minimum of 5 reports with catch data is required for a month or season to show a value; “—” means insufficient data, not no fish. Competition catch rates are per boat and tend lower because events run on fixed dates regardless of conditions.
Season-by-season comparison
Each season rated by sentiment analysis across all reports. Sentiment bars show the proportion of excellent, good, moderate, and poor reports.
| Season | Reports | Catch/Rod | Comp/Boat | Sentiment | First Mayfly | Best Month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1 | — | — | — | — | |
| 2024 | 5 | — | — | — | March | |
| 2023 | 2 | — | — | May 11 | — | |
| 2022 | 2 | — | — | — | — | |
| 2021COVID | 1 | — | — | May 14 | — | |
| 2019 | 13 | — | 0.9 | May 2 | June | |
| 2018 | 10 | 4.3 | 0.2 | May 2 | April | |
| 2017 | 18 | 2.1 | 0.8 | April 27 | March | |
| 2016 | 21 | 2.7 | 2.7 | May 11 | March | |
| 2015 | 21 | 3.5 | 7.2 | April 30 | April | |
| 2014 | 12 | 3.3 | 2.7 | May 8 | April | |
| 2013 | 20 | 3.1 | 0.9 | May 23 | July | |
| 2012 | 23 | 3.1 | 4.1 | May 10 | February | |
| 2011 | 2 | — | — | — | September |
Catch/Rod requires 5+ reports with explicit catch numbers for that season. Comp/Boat requires 1+ competition with boat and fish counts. “—” indicates insufficient data, not absence of fish.
Competition catch rates
Average fish per boat from organised competitions — the most reliable catch data, since boat counts are always recorded. Based on 14 competitions across 8 seasons.
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Voices from the water
Quotes extracted from IFI reports that capture the essence of fishing on Lough Mask.
Mask is fishing exceptionally well
fish of a lifetime
Fish of a lifetime